There's a moment in early evening — usually when the light goes amber and the day's sharp edges begin to soften — where everything just feels a little more right. That's the Golden Glow moment. Bright, uplifting, warm without being heavy. The kind of feeling you want to stretch out as long as possible.
We built Golden Glow around that exact sensation — tangerine and juicy nectarine leading the way, our 1:1 THC and CBG blend delivering clarity and calm underneath. And then we asked ourselves the same question we always do: what do you make to go with it?
The answer, it turns out, is this pasta. And once you taste them together, you'll understand why immediately.
Why This Pairing Works
Great pairings aren't accidental. They're built on the same principle as a good conversation — each element listening to the other, responding, making the whole exchange more than either part alone.
Golden Glow leads with bright citrus — tangerine and nectarine — with a natural sweetness and a clean, uplifting finish. So we built a sauce that speaks the same language. Fresh tangerine juice and zest pulled directly from the fruit. Nectarine softened into the pan until it echoes the stone fruit note in the drink with an uncanny precision. Brown butter to bring the warmth and nuttiness that grounds all that brightness without competing with it.
Every sip of Golden Glow after a bite of this pasta is essentially the same flavor saying hello to itself. That's not a coincidence. That's a pairing done right.
The Recipe: Golden Glow Brown Butter Pasta
Serves 4 | Prep: 15 min | Cook: 20 min
Ingredients
For the pasta:
- 12 oz rigatoni or pappardelle
For the sauce:
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 shallots, thinly sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- ½ cup fresh tangerine juice
- 2 tsp tangerine zest
- 2 nectarines, pitted and thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- ½ tsp red chilli flakes
- Kosher salt and black pepper
To finish:
- ½ cup parmesan, finely grated
- ¼ cup fresh basil, torn
- 3 tbsp toasted pine nuts
- Flaky sea salt
How to Make It
1. Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until just al dente — about 2 minutes less than the package suggests. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining. You'll need it.
2. Brown the butter. In a wide, heavy skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and let it cook undisturbed until it turns golden and smells nutty — small brown bits will form at the base of the pan. This is the moment. Watch it closely; it goes from perfect to burned in under a minute.
3. Build the base. Add the shallots to the brown butter and cook for 2–3 minutes until softened and beginning to caramelize. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for another minute until fragrant. Add the chilli flakes and let them bloom in the butter.
4. Deglaze and add citrus. Pour in the white wine and let it reduce by half, about 1 minute. Add the tangerine juice and zest — the pan will hiss and the kitchen will smell like the inside of a Golden Glow can. Let it reduce slightly for 2 minutes.
5. Add the nectarine and cream. Add the nectarine slices and cook for 2 minutes until they soften slightly but still hold their shape. Pour in the cream and stir to combine, letting the sauce come together over medium-low heat.
6. Bring it together. Add the drained pasta directly to the sauce along with a generous splash of reserved pasta water. Toss everything together over medium heat for 1–2 minutes until the sauce coats every inch of the pasta beautifully. Add the parmesan and toss again. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Finish and serve. Divide between bowls. Top with torn basil, toasted pine nuts, and a pinch of flaky sea salt. Serve immediately alongside a cold Golden Glow — and let the citrus in the glass and the citrus in the bowl do something genuinely wonderful together.
A Few Notes Before You Cook
Don't skip the nectarine. It sounds unconventional in a pasta sauce, and it is — but it's the detail that makes this pairing genuinely sing. It softens into the sauce and echoes the stone fruit note in Golden Glow in a way that feels intentional and sophisticated. Trust it.
Use fresh tangerine juice. Not orange. Not from a carton. The brightness of fresh tangerine is what mirrors the drink directly, and it's worth the extra two minutes of squeezing.
The deglazing trick. If you don't have white wine on hand, a splash of Golden Glow itself works beautifully as the liquid — and it's a neat party trick that deepens the pairing in a way that feels almost too clever.
Make it a meal. This pasta is a generous side as written, but pan-seared scallops or grilled shrimp turn it into a full dinner. Both play beautifully with the citrus butter sauce and elevate the whole occasion to something worth opening an extra can for.
On pasta shape: Rigatoni holds the sauce in its ridges for maximum coverage on every bite. Pappardelle gives you wide, buttery ribbons that feel a little more luxurious. Both are excellent. Neither is wrong.
Golden hour deserves golden food. Pour something worth savoring, and let the evening take its time.
Golden Glow is part of the Highland Falls Drinks lineup — crafted for the moments worth savoring. Explore the full collection at highlandfalls.us.