Drinks – Page 6 – Ice & Bitters

Mojito – Molecular version

I recently tried out one of the recipes in the Mojito R-Evolution kit by Molecule-R: the suspended mint caviar mojito.

The recipe isn’t terribly tricky – you can see the methodology on their website – you boil up sugar & mint in water, add a thickening agent, and then form the spheres so beloved in molecular gastronomy by dropping the mint gel into a liquid that causes a membrane to form around the gel. What is tricky is forming perfectly round spheres of mint – mine came out like irregular blobs, so clearly plenty of practice is required to make even, consistent mint caviar.

Making the mint gel, prior to sphericization

I also discovered that the mint solution has a fairly pale green colour when made, so I added a fair amount of natural green colouring to get something approximating the bright green illustrated on the packaging.

The third point to note is that the recipe given in the Molecule-R booklet lists lime as an ingredient, then forgets all about it in the method. I squeezed the lime into the final mixed drink, as it was lacking something without it, to say the least: a mojito without lime is harking back to the original 1941 version of the drink (according to mixologist David Herpin), but it is not the version we enjoy now.

Old-fashioned: Bourbon

One of the most basic of all cocktails, the Old-fashioned is also one of the finest because of its simplicity: a mix of sugar, bitters and spirits, served over ice with a large slice of citrus zest. Here I have used my Bulleit bourbon & Peychaud’s for the bitters, as the orange flavour suits the zest garnish to my mind.

Proportions (using a jigger/pony measure):

1 jigger of bourbon

3 drops bitters.

Sugar cube

Glass: Small tumbler or old-fashioned glass.

Shake bitters onto a sugar cube & muddle in the glass until the sugar is crushed. Add a few drops of water if liked to dissolve the sugar. Add ice cubes, then pour bourbon over the ice, and stir, leaving the spoon in the glass. Garnish with a large slice of orange zest.

Historical note:
The Old-fashioned seems to be one of the oldest drinks recipes: around 1860, a simple recipe of bitters, sugar & spirits was being called ‘old-fashioned’ as it had been around thirty years by then. The bourbon version seems to have sprung from the Pendennis Club, who passed the recipe to New York, some time around the end of the C19th.

Manhattan: Bourbon

It is not the ‘classic’ version of the drink, but many people drink the version of the Manhattan that uses bourbon (here, I’ve used Bulleit, 90˚ proof) as the base spirit. To my my mind, this suits the sweet Manhattan recipe better – using only red vermouth (Martini Rosso) – as the dryness of the white version jars with the flavours of the bourbon. I don’t think it makes the drink undrinkable, though, so it would be worth experimenting to see what suits your tastes better.

Proportions (using a jigger/pony measure):

1 jigger of bourbon

1 pony of sweet vermouth

4 drops bitters.

Glass: Small, or 3oz, Martini glass.

Shake until ice cold & strain into the glass. Garnish with a cocktail cherry.

Manhattan: Rye

Purists will disagree, but I like my Manhattans perfect – not made to an exact recipe, or served without flaws, but made with a mix of sweet and dry vermouth. The dry vermouth – in this case, Noilly Prat – seems to complement the spicy hit of rye whiskey (Canadian Club), and the small amount of sweet vermouth (Martini Rosso) adds the roundness the cocktail is known for. A few drops of Abbott’s bitters to add a pleasant spicy, vanilla-ish dimension, and that’s it. Just perfect, in every way. I add one maraschino cocktail cherry, and one that’s had some bitters added to the syrup in the jar to darken it a little more. Another option is a slice of orange peel, but the cherries seemed nicely retro this time.

Proportions (using a jigger/pony measure):

1 jigger of whiskey

1 pony of dry & sweet vermouth

4 drops bitters.

Glass: Small, or 3oz, Martini glass.

Shake until ice cold & strain into the glass. Garnish with a cocktail cherry.

Historical footnote: The Manhattan is named after the club where the drink was first mixed in 1874. The Manhattan Club’s bartender was asked to create a drink for a party. The party, in honour of a politician named Samuel Tilden, was hosted Jennie Jerome – who went on to become Lady Randolph Churchill, and mother of Winston Churchill.