Think Pink

Pinkster Gin and Fever Tree Tonic

It's that time of year again when many of us will be thinking of what to buy our lovely mums for Mother's Day and if my children are reading this - ask daddy to get mummy a nice bottle of gin please...

There are a myriad of wonderful gins to choose from out there and I am doing my level best to work through them all with the able assistance of recent gin convert and father of my children, Mr TG. This week we have been mostly drinking Pinkster, a small batch, British gin with  a delicate, pink colour and slightly sweet and fragrant flavour that is partially derived from raspberries (hence the pink colour) and I suspect, lavender, although I don't know for sure as the makers are tantalisingly vague.  

This kind of vagary is not uncommon in the gin world, however. In order to qualify as 'gin', the main botanical must be juniper, but that does leave room for all manner of experimentation and whilst many artisanal brands list their botanicals with pride, it's likely that those ingredients are not the whole story. It's a competitive business these days and who can blame  distillers for holding a little something back...

So, back to Pinkster - drunk neat, it is sweetish and floral with a fruity sharpness that is more berry than citrus. The makers recommend serving it with a good tonic, a sprig of mint and a fresh raspberry, which makes an exceptionally pretty and delicious G&T. If your dearest mama is partial to a drop of gin then a bottle of this would make a marvellous Mother's Day gift or if you can't bear to be parted from it, having purchased a bottle, then why not rustle up a few cocktails instead?

Pinkster Gin

This week I have been making some 'pink' variations of a few of my favourite cocktail classics as well as creating this sweet citrus, easily quaffable drink that is bound to please even the most awkward of mothers on Mothering Sunday.

Belles of St Clements

1oz Pinkster Gin

1oz Triple Sec

1/2oz lemon juice

1 small egg white

1/2 tsp grenadine

1oz cava or champagne

Orange wheel to garnish

Add all of the ingredients apart from the fizz, to the bottom of a cocktail shaker and whisk until frothy - you can 'dry' shake the ingredients without ice, to the same effect, but please be aware that this can cause a build of pressure in the shaker and the lid can pop off!

Strain the mixture into a chilled martini glass and then float the fizz on top.

Garnish with a slice of orange - I have used a miniature orange, but an orange slice will be just fine.

Belles of St Clements - glass by Toasted Glass

This next cocktail is an update of the eternally popular and simple to make, Negroni, using Pinkster Gin and Chase Elderflower liqueur. In a classic Negroni, the bitterness of the Campari is tempered by the sweetness of sweet vermouth, but with the 'Pinkroni', I've countered the bitterness with elderflower liqueur which makes it slightly sweeter and more floral.

Pinkroni

1oz Pinkster Gin

1oz Chase Elderflower Liqueur

1oz Campari

Add all of the ingredients to a tumbler or rocks glass with a few large ice cubes and stir to mix and chill the liquid. This has quite an intense flavour, but will dilute as the ice melts. I personally like to stir mine for 30 secs to get to an optimal dilution, but do experiment until you find your perfect mix.

Pinkroni Cocktail - glass by Toasted Glass

This next cocktail, the Martinez, is thought to be a precursor to the Martini (gin and dry vermouth) that mixes sweet vermouth with gin, but what really brings the drink to life, is the addition of a little maraschino liqueur and bitters. For me, the Martinez is a far more palatable drink than the Martini which is too dry for my liking and this Pink Martinez is a lovely alternative that uses Martini Rosato, the rosé alternative to Martini Rosso sweet vermouth. Martini Rosato combines flavours of pomegranate, raspberry, cinnamon and lemon giving it a sweet and spicy finish and a perfect companion to Pinkster.

Pink Martinez

2oz Martini Rosato

1oz Pinkster Gin

2 dashes Luxardos Maraschino Liqueur

2 dashes orange bitters

3 raspberries to garnish

Add all of the ingredients apart from the garnish to the bottom of a shaker with a handful of ice.

Stir the mix for about 20 secs to cool the liquid and create the perfect viscosity.

Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with 3 raspberries strung on a cocktail stick and dropped into the glass.

Pink Martinez

This last cocktail is a great alternative to Pimms as it's easy to put together and can be served by the glass or easily scaled up to serve in a pitcher. Rather than lemonade, it uses Fever Tree Elderflower Tonic which enhances the floral notes of lavender from the Pinkster Gin and the fragrant peach in Cartron's creme de peche de vigne.

Pinkster No.1

1 part Pinkster Gin

1 part Creme de Framboises

1 part Creme de Peche de Vigne

3 parts Fever Tree Elderflower Tonic

Handful of mint leaves

Handful of raspberries

A few lemon slices

Fill the bottom of a large pitcher with ice and add the mint and fruit.

Pour in the alcohol and tonic and stir to mix.

Pinkster No.1 - glass by Toasted Glass

The Velvet Teas Cocktail

Bespoke Cocktail Service Hand painted detail of bespoke pitcher for Velvet Teas

Following on from the success of the The Secret Tea Society Cocktail (click here for details) , my involvement with the wonderful world of tea has carried on apace and I was recently commissioned to create a bespoke cocktail for a lovely company, based in Bath who create vintage style tea party events.

Velvet Teas is run by the delightful Emma Reynolds and was born of a love of fine china, beautiful linens and the exquisite pleasure of wonderfully sumptuous afternoon tea. Her tea party events already boast a selection of delicious sounding menus and Velvet Teas work with clients to provide the perfect tea party experience for any occasion. However, Emma felt that a bespoke cocktail would be a perfect addition to the  Velvet Teas menu and would enrich the whole experience for her ladies.

The criteria this cocktail had to fulfil were manifold.
First and foremost, it had to have universal appeal. As Emma's clients are almost exclusively female, this meant finding something with mass, feminine appeal.
Next, it had to be easy to prepare as events are very busy and nobody wants to wait half an hour for a drink to be ready. For this reason, it was decided that it should be a cocktail that could be made in a pitcher so that large groups could all order it without sending the catering into meltdown!
Despite being a pitcher based drink, it still had to be served in a coupe style glass which meant it couldn't be served over ice, like a highball.
It was also important to create a cocktail that went well with cake, so it had to be sweet without being sickly. Finally, and crucially, it had to be purple, so as to make it relevant to the Velvet Teas brand.

Many purple cocktails later, the Raspberry Velvet Tease was created. It's a fruity and fresh blend of Gin, creme de framboises, cranberry and lemon with the addition of blue curacao to give it the desired, purple hue. The recipe can be adapted to make a martini style cocktail, a highball or a pitcher, which is perfect if you are thinking of having a party.

As with all the Bespoke Cocktails I create, the final recipe is accompanied by a hand painted miniature bottle with the alcoholic part of the cocktail, a recipe sheet and a hand written letter to fully explain the thinking behind the choices.

Bespoke Cocktail Service hand painted miniature

In the case of Velvet Teas, I also hand painted a large pitcher that will be used for serving the Raspberry Velvet Tease cocktail at their tea party events. If you would like to find out more about Velvet Teas and the wonderful events they can provide, then please click here to go their website.

Bespoke Cocktail Service for Velvet Teas

Raspberry Velvet Tease

Pitcher Method

Ingredients
1 part gin
1/2 part creme de framboises
1/2 part blue curacao
1/2 part lemon juice
1 part cranberry juice
1 part sparkling water
lots of ice

Add all of the ingredients apart from the sparkling water, to a large pitcher, with ice.
Use a long handled spoon to stir the ingredients well, for about 20 seconds - it is important to get the drink as cold and as well mixed as possible.
Add the sparkling water and give another short stir to mix - not too vigorous this time or you will lose the fizz.
Strain the cocktail into martini style glasses to avoid including any ice.
Garnish with a fresh raspberry.

Bespoke Cocktail Service - hand painted pitcher

White Lace cocktail glasses by Toasted Glass