Discovering Bath & Bristol

Well it’s getting towards the end of our UK adventure, but before we depart we had time for one last trip. We decided to visit the city of Bristol and the near by town of Bath. These places had been highly recommended to us by many friends. I’d also read a lot about Bristol’s cocktail culture. Several articles have said that some of the bars in Bristol rival the top places in London. So we jumped on a train and headed west towards Bristol. 

When I researched what there was to see in Bristol, I was impressed with the many museums and galleries that seemed to be on offer. Over the past couple of years, Cara and I have had our fare share exploring museums, so we decided to do something a little different. I’d heard about Bristol’s famous “Nelson St”, before our visit. A once dark and dirty road which had been turned into a vibrant display space for street art. The project was called “See No Evil” and it is the largest outdoor street art display in the UK. The display was only opened in August 2012. It involved 45 graffiti artists, 3,500 cans of spray paint spread over 12 buildings along Nelson Street.  It was certainly an impressive site. We had to  walk down the road twice, as when you walked from the top of the road to the bottom, you only saw half of the designs. When we turned around and walked back, the street took on a whole new look, as new pieces emerged. 

As our day of exploring Bristol came to a close, It was time for us to start thinking about where we would have dinner and which of Bristols many bars we’d visit and review.  A highly recommended restaurant on Bristol’s waterfront was the “Severnshed”. This converted boat shed offered an extensive dinner menu offering many different cuisines, which suit us perfectly as we’d worked up quite an appetite during a day of walking around Bristol.  There cocktail menu was impressive too. A selection of classics, variations on classics and around 5 or 6 of the house signatures, meant we had plenty to choose from but without being to overwhelmed with choice.  Cara continued her love for gin and ordered a drink called a “Gin Honey Sour”. The variation on the classic sour, consisting of Beefeater Gin, pink grapefruit juice, a squeeze of honey, lemon juice, sugar syrup and one egg white. In the past I’ve found ‘sours’ a type of drink that can be easily made badly. Sometimes, bartenders feel the need to take the name ‘sour’ to literally and cram to much lemon juice into the drink. but it is in fact the sugar which is the secret to a good sour. Fortunately this “Gin Honey Sour”, had the perfect balance of lemon and sugar. To compliment this, was the grapefruit and the honey which gave the drink some body and changed it from just being a plan old ‘sour’, into something unique.  

After a great meal and satisfing cocktails, we ventured across to the other side of Bristol to visit a little prohibition style bar called “Hyde & Co”. This bar also was highly recommended and boasted weird and wonderful creations and unique alterations to prohibition classics.  We had a few different drinks but one which stood out to us was a cocktail called a “Confire”. This drink was made up of Chairmans Reserve Rum, Blanco Vermouth, rhubarb syrup, a dash of lemon juice, Chartreuse and a dash of egg white. Chartreuse is often a difficult spirit to use in cocktails due to it’s over powering nature. But this was subtle. What really came through strongly in this drink was the rhubarb syrup. This gave the drink a nice sweetness was balanced out well with the lemon juice and the egg white gave the cocktail a smooth, fluffy texture which made it a pleasure to drink. After a great dinner and some amazing cocktails we returned to our hotel, ready for another big day visiting the small town of Bath.  

This little town is around 15 minutes on the train outside of Bristol. By far the main tourist attraction is the Roman Baths. As Cara and I got of the train and made our way in toward the Roman Baths. We were instantly impressed with the architecture which lined the streets leading up to the baths. As we arrived, I was in photography mode as the neighbouring Bath Abbey was a site you couldn't miss. After many photos and much exploring outside the site of the baths, We entered the site of the ancient ruins, and straight away we could feel the warmth coming from the hot springs. It was a nice change from another bitterly cold british day.  We learnt that the baths were first discovered in 836 BC, but it wasn't until after the Roman invasion, around 60 AD, that construction of the temples and surrounding baths began. Over the next 300 years the Romans would gradually build the site up and around the hot springs to create a place of spiritual meaning and healing.  As we continued to explore, we noticed the many statues and figures on display, all with their own story and special meaning in Roman history. Most notably was the statue of Julus Ceasar, which was positioned at the head of the "Grand Bath".  We continued on through past the Sacred Spring and underground through the many temples to finally at the end have the chance to taste some of the (so called) fresh water which was taken from the Sacred spring. Unfortunatly this was not one of the tastiest beverages we've had on our travels. Dispite the dodgy sacred water, Cara and I both had an amazing day. We got to (as was mentioned several times on the tour) "Do as the Romans did" and enjoy walking around the beautiful hot springs.

We headed back to Bristol for the night and got our selfs ready for our last trip back to London. We are always excited to do something different on our trips, and our visit to Bristol and Bath gave us a chance to see some amazing street art in Bristol, walk in the footsteps of the Romans in Bath and have some delicious food and some quirky cocktails.

“Gin Honey Sour”

In a shaker:

45ml Beefeater gin

30ml Pink Grapefruit juice

A Teaspoon of Honey

15ml lemon juice

15ml Sugar syrup

1 Egg white

Shake hard and strain into cocktail glass

“Confire”

In a shaker:

30ml Chairmans Reserve Rum

15ml Blanco Vermouth

15ml Rhubard syrup

A Dash of Lemon Juice

10ml Chartreuse

Dash of egg white

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass

The Plymouth Gin Distillery

A place we had on our list of towns and cities to go and visit in the UK (but have not yet had the chance) was Plymouth. When we told people that we really wanted to go to Plymouth, they seemed to all reply with the same questions, Why? What is there to see? and our response was always “Isn’t it obvious? The Plymouth Gin Distillery”.  Before coming to the UK, Cara probably would not have been to bothered about visiting a gin distillery, but she’s recently became very fond of a gin and tonic. So drinking “G&T’s” at Plymouth sounded like a great idea. Aside from our own personal love for gin, it is also one of the most popular spirits in the UK, so visiting the home of the most popular gin going around, it felt like a very ‘british’ thing to do.

Plymouth distillery has been producing gin since 1793. It is the oldest distillery still operating in the UK. The distillery itself is even older. Built in 1431, it was originally a monastery until the site was sold to distilling company, Fox & Williamson in 1793, when they began producing gin. In the years to come, gin would grow rapidly in popularity, due to it’s low cost. At one point, gin was cheaper than beer. Plymouth led the market producing top quality gin and began exporting it all over europe and then the world. It’s clean and fresh taste was largely due to the distillers sourcing natural fresh water from nearby Dartmoor National park. At the start of the 1900’s, Plymouth received another boost to it’s popularity when it became the only brand name to be specified in the famous “Savoy Cocktail Book”. 23 gin cocktails were listed in the book. Today, Plymouth is one of the most awarded spirits in the world, winning several gold medals at the annual San Francisco World Spirits Competition. 

Plymouth’s standard strength, is 41.2% alcohol. This gin is said to have a more earthy flavours. It contains seven key botanicals, juniper, sweet orange, cardamon, angelica root, orris root and pure grain.   It’s described as having a soft and fruity taste with hints of sage and eucalyptus. Me personally, I find it hard to distinguish between different gins. But Plymouth Gin, certainly does have a clean and crisp finish which can only be found in the higher quality spirits.  

Today the distillery is complete with a restuarant and a cocktail bar stocking some of the best gins in the UK, as well as the full Plymouth range. After looking around the distillery, we decided to check out the bar and have a Plymouth gin cocktail. We could have ordered one of their signature creations, but we decided to go with a classic, and by far one of the most well know gin cocktails of all time is a “Tom Collins”.  This famous cocktail consists of Gin, lemon juice, sugar syrup and soda water. It was invented in 1876 by the godfather of American mixology, Jerry Thomas. It’s origin stems back to a practical joke played on people in bars in New York and it soon spread to other bars across America. The joke was when you greeted someone in a bar, you would ask “Have you seen Tom Collins?” when the person replies, “I don’t know anyone under the name Tom Collins”, you would then say “Well Tom was talking about you in a bar around the corner”. This would then give the person a little bit of paranoia. It was a simple joke, but one which was often told in many bars. Once Jerry Thomas invented the cocktail, the joke became a funny way of ordering this classic gin drink.  The cocktail was not only popular due to the joke, it was a great refreshing drink. Jerry Thomas could have named this cocktail anything and it still would have been just as well known. The simple mix of gin, lemons and sugar gave you the perfect balance of something dry, sour and sweet. A great cocktail to drink in the summer. 

We had both eaten a massive lunch during and visit to Plymouth distillery, so when it was time to sit back and relax, we were glad to be drinking a refreshing “Tom Collins”. We had a great time visiting Plymouth Gin Distillery. It was definitely well worth the visit. The distillery has changed with the times and is now one of the most popular tourist attractions in Plymouth. I know Plymouth is a popular gin in Australia, so once we return home, I’ll see this gin as a fond reminder of our time here.

“Tom Collins”

Built in a tall glass

45ml Plymouth Gin

15ml Sugar Syrup

30ml Lemon Juice

Topped up with Soda Water

Last Night in Scotland... A Night out in Edinburgh

As we set off again, after having a relaxing night in Oban, it was time to finish our road trip and head back to Edinburgh. What an amazing few days we've had. We managed to cover lots of ground in such a short time. From the east coast of Scotland at St. Andrews, Up and over the highlands to Inverness, then down the west side to Oban and back across to Edinburgh. To celebrate the end of our road trip and also the end to our time in Scotland, we decided to head out and see what the Edinburgh night life had to offer. 

There was one cocktail bar which was on the top of my list to visit in Edinburgh, that was the "Bramble Bar”.  Bramble Bar has won many awards over the years. Australian Bartender Magazine listed Bramble in the top 20 bars in the world. It is also said to be the best bar to visit in Scotland. The menu at Bramble is extensive but without being too over-whelming. They offer a good mixture of classics, variations on classics as well as some of there own creations. I decided to order a cocktail called “Lazarus Lane”. This is a simple yet unique combination of Tapatio blanco tequila, blackberries, ginger extract, vanilla flavoured sugar and garnished with a sprig of rosemary. It’s served over one large cube of ice with is chiselled out of a huge ice block by the bartender. When sipping this drink, the smell of the rosemary hits you straight away. Then when tasted, the acidity of the blackberries works well with the sweetness of the vanilla and ginger extract. Then there is the tequila, which adds a whole other dimension to the drink. It’s a combination of simple ingredients, but they all compliment each other and work well together. Warning though... this drink is not for everyone. Cara took a sip of the “Lazarus Lane” and she did not like it at all.  It’s bitter taste did not go down to well, but I like it. It was different and had been well thought through. 

Recently Cara has been taking after my love of rum, and has started to often order rum based cocktails. Our visit to Bramble was no exception. She ordered a cocktail called a “Red Rum”. This consisted of (one of my favourite rums) Bacardi 8 year old, Plymouth Sloe Gin, fresh lemon juice, red currants and vanilla sugar syrup. This was definitely more to Cara’s liking. The sweetness of the vanilla sugar and dark rum blended well together with the flavours of the gin. This drink was not sour at all, so the lemon juice was simply there to bind all these flavours together. Out of the 2 cocktails, Cara’s “Red Rum” would certainly appeal to more people. 

After Bramble, We made our way to another near by cocktail bar, “Bon Viant”. A bar which has a great reputation as being one of the best in Edinburgh. As we walked in we could see why. The place was packed and with almost every person holding a cocktail. We found a small part of the bar to stand and ordered a lesser known classic drink, A “Millionaires Cocktail”. This classic first featured in Harry Cradock’s book from the 1930’s, “The Savoy Cocktail Book”. Since it was first published, it’s stood the test of time and has taken on many variations over the years. It consists of 25ml Sloe Gin, 25ml Apricot Brandy, 25ml Jamaican Rum, the juice of 1 lime, a dash of grenadine and a dash of egg white. Then shaken into a martini glass. Like most classics, It’s a well balanced cocktail which is easy for almost anyone to drink. It’s similar to an original daiquiri, with its rum and lime, but the added sloe gin and apricot brandy gives the drink more fruitiness.  The egg white gives the drink a unique texture. 

We headed to a few more bars in the near by area, before calling it a night. Our time in Scotland has been unforgettable and a night out in the trendy city of Edinburgh was the perfect way to finish. 

Bramble Bars, “Lazarus Lane”

In a Shaker:

Muddle Blackberries

45ml Tapatio Blanco Tequila

Dash of Ginger Extract

15ml Vanilla Sugar Syrup

Shake and Strain over ice into a short rocks glass

Garish with a Sprig of Rosemary

Bramble Bars, “Red Rum”

In a shaker:

Muddle Red Currents

30ml Bacardi 8 year old Rum

30ml Plymouth Sloe Gin

15ml Lemon Juice

15ml Vanilla Sugar Syrup

Shake and Strain into Martini Glass

Bon Viant Bar, “Millionaires Cocktail”

In a Shaker:

25ml Sloe Gin

25ml Apricot Brandy

25ml Jamaican Rum

The Juice of 1 Lime

Dash of Grenadine

Dash of egg white

Shake and Strain into Martini Glass

The Italian Job

It seems that Cara and I just can’t stay away from Italy. We’ve done Rome, we’ve done Milan and Lake Como, but now it was time for us to visit the city of Venice. It was also Cara’s parents first visit to Italy, so they were just as excited as us to explore the canals and tiny alley ways of Venice.

Venice is a place famous for it’s beautiful scenery, It’s architecture and It’s artworks. The city is seemingly one island, but it is in fact made up of 118 small islands all linked together with hundreds of footbridges. It’s history dates back to the ancient roman times. The roman soldiers built and used Venice to flee mainland attacks. No one is sure when the romans first lived in venice, but the city was first officially founded on the 25th March, 421 AD, with the opening of the first church, the San Giacomo di Rialto. Since this day, a further 148 churches have been built and Venice has expanded to now have a population of around 270,000 people living on the islands. Known as the “Floating City”, it’s visited by approximately 20 million tourists a year.

One of the fun things about Venice is exploring the canals and It’s alley ways. It’s easy to get lost as the streets get narrow and wind through around the waterways. Whilst we explored, we walked past several little shops offering Italian souvenirs, I noticed that little bottles of limoncello were a popular item. Limoncello is huge in Italy. It’s common to finish off a meal with a small nip of this sweet digestive.  The Italians have been producing limoncello since the early 1900’s. It was homemade, by simply soaking lemon peals and zest with grain alcohol until all the oils are released, then mixed with sugar syrup and chilled and served ice cold. In 1988, Italian business-man, Massimo Canale became the first person to trademark the name “limoncello” and began mass production and selling of the product. The bottles of Massimo Canale’s limoncello were instantly popular in the local shops and markets throughout Italy and it was soon being exported to other countries. Limoncello is now an Italian icon, hence it’s popularity in the souvenir shops throughout Venice.


After a busy day, Cara and I decided to spend a night out at a local jazz bar, tucked away in a little lane-way just off the Grand Canal.  I couldn’t resist ordering one of the house specialities, a “Miles Davis”. A cocktail which had many similarities to a Long Island Iced Tea. It consisted of gin, vodka, rum, blue curacao (orange flavoured liqueur), grenadine, a dash of lemon juice and topped up with lemonade, all built in a tall glass over ice. Not the most original drink, and I couldn’t help but wonder what the correlation this cocktail had to the man Miles Davis himself.  What ever the reason, it didn’t matter. We were in Venice sipping cocktails and listening to jazz, both reflecting on how lucky we are to be doing what we are doing.


“Miles Davis”
Built in a Tall Glass over Ice
15ml Gin
15ml Vodka
15ml Rum
15ml Blue Curacao
15ml Grenadine
A Dash of Lemon Juice
Top up with Lemonade

Back to Italy

Well it’s summer again in Europe, and Cara and I have been looking forward to getting out of the cold, wet weather that we’ve been experiencing in London and go back to one of our favourite countries in Europe for some sunshine and amazing food... Thats right, we were returning to Italy. Our first trip to Italy was very special. We travelled to Rome and had an amazing few days. This time round we made a trip to one of Europes fashion capitals, Milan.  Being a city of style and fashion, it was fair to assume that their bar and cocktail culture would follow the same trend. So we were both excited to explore another new city, try some new cocktails and of course eat the amazing Italian food.


By far the main attraction in Milan is the “Duomo di Milano”, which translates to the Cathedral of Milan. This gothic and impressive structure began construction in 1386. It was finally complete in 1965. Looking at the fine detail in the cathedrals exterior, we could understand why it took them so long to complete. It is the forth-largest cathedral in Europe, and it’s the largest in Italy. So Cara and I decided to find a perfect spot to have some of our much-loved antipasti and take in the grandeur of the Duomo, before continuing our exploration of Milan.

A trip to Milan is not complete without experiencing the cities high-end fashion scene. As we walked the streets, passing all the big name featured stores; we decided to make another stop. This time at Dolce & Gabbana, and more importantly the D&G Martini bar. This fashion icon is the brain child of 2 Italian fashion designers, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. They came together in 1982 to launch one of the most sort after brands in Italy and the world. The D&G Martini bar has been designed to convey the same ideals of the high-end fashion label, which has made the brand so successful today. It’s relaxing, intimate and glamorous setting, gives shoppers the perfect place to unwind after a ‘hard’ days shopping. I wanted to order a cocktail from their menu that screamed “Italy”. I chose a cocktail called “Milano”. Not the most original name in the world, but one that was fitting. It was a martini that consisted of equal parts Campari (another great Italian spirit), Gin and Aperol. It was garnished with slice of orange, which was coated in saffron. This cocktail was exactly what I expected. Crisp clean, with a (what I like to call) razor sharp finish. It is certainly not a cocktail for everyone. Campari can be a tough spirit to drink. But as I looked around the room, I couldn’t help but notice that most of the other patrons were drinking the famous fiery red spirit. Only in Italy would you find so many people drinking Campari at the same time. Aside from the Campari, the gin and the Aperol added to its dry crispness. The Aperol gave the cocktail a refreshing apricot after taste. The garnish was a nice touch too. A saffron coated orange slice was something original. It gave the drink an acidity, which complemented the spirits nicely.

As we sat and enjoyed our drinks, we noticed every customer that walked into D&G’s Martini bar all came carrying a number of shopping bags from the various well known fashion label stores in the nearby area. Being typical Aussies, dressed in flip-flops and me in my Australian soccer top, we suddenly felt a little out of place. Not to worry though, the day was young and we still had lots to see in Milan.

D&G’s “Martini Bar”
The Milano:
In the cocktail shaker
30ml Campari
30ml Gin
30ml Aperol
Stir and strain into a Martini Glass
Garnish with a slice of Orange coated
in Saffron.

The Championships: Wimbledon 2012

When we arrived in London over a year ago, one of the top priorities was to go to the All England Lawn Tennis Club for The Championships at Wimbledon. For some strange reason, I never wrote about our day. Cara and I had a great day a year ago, however in true Wimbledon style, we en-counted wind and rain. So when the tournament rolled around again, I decided to return to the All England Club  to capture what makes The Championships so special.

I don’t need to give many people a history lesson on the event, as it is widely considered to be the most famous and most prestigious of tennis tournaments in the world. It was first played in 1877, and it’s one of the few tournaments still to played on grass. Back in 1877, the event had a mens singles field of 22 players and the mens final was watched by around 200 spectators who only paid one shilling each to attend. Today, Wimbledon is now a massive money maker, both on and off the court. For the 256 players who play in the singles draws today, prize money is larger than ever, sponsorship is forever increasing and therefore crowd attendance is constantly growing every year. Due to ever growing popularity of Wimbledon, comes the demand for more food and drink at the Championships.

Arguably the most popular purchase by spectators is the famous Wimbledon strawberries and cream. Fans flock from around the world to experience the Tennis at Wimbledon and strawberries and cream is usually a huge part of their day. Along with this popular snack, champagne and Pimms also have a fair showing. But aside from these standard features at Wimbledon, nearby bars and pubs are now stamping their own name on the Wimbledon festivities. Thanks to the “Drinks Business” web site, I was able to find two new tennis themed cocktails which would be popular at this years event.

One of the cocktails is a Cucumber & Strawberry Mojito Royale.
This Mojito variation consists of:

Build in a tall glass:
45ml Hendricks gin
3 Cucumber slices
2 - 3 Strawberries
A Handful of Mint
15ml Sugar Syrup
15ml Lime Juice
Add Crushed Ice
Topped up with champagne.

The other cocktail featured over the 2 weeks of the Championships is the "SW19 Cocktail”.

In a shaker:
30ml Gin
30ml Mandarine Liqueur
15ml Elderflower Cordial
15ml Lemon Juice
10ml Home made Cucumber Puree
10ml Home made Celery Puree
Shaken and double strained into a short glass over a
frozen lime cordial flavoured ice



A day at Wimbledon is truly an unforgettable experience, and I’ve been lucky to doing have now done it twice. I’m sure the prestige will continue to grow, as i’m sure will the tournaments tennis themed drinks.

My Birthday @ Milk & Honey

Well... It’s my birthday, and Cara being the amazing woman that she is, has organised a gathering of our friends in a cocktail bar which I’ve been dying to go to since we arrived in London. “Milk & Honey” is an exclusive members only bar located in Soho. This bar is well known all over the world for it’s high level of service and of course amazing drinks. I’d heard of “Milk & Honey” back in Australia some time ago, so my expectations of this bar was high.  So exclusive is “Milk & Honey”, the entrance is a challenge to find in itself. Hidden behind a single unmarked door, we were half expecting to have to give the hostess a secret password to enter.  

The bar opened in April 2002. It is the sister bar to the original “Milk and Honey” based in New York. Its design is cozy and intimate. Dim lighting with several booths, which make you feel like you’re the only people in the bar. Another feature worth mentioning are the house rules. Rules that were written to be a little “tongue-in-cheek”, but you can’t help but take them semi seriously. Rules such as “All gentlemen must remove their hats” seems reasonable, but then rules like “Gentlemen must not introduce themselves to ladies. You must get the bartender to introduce you” seems a little far-fetched, not to mention hard to enforce. 

So once you’ve found the secret door, gotten a table and understood the house rules, It’s time to check out the menu.  The cocktail menu was designed by cocktail guru and a bar legend in the business, Dale DeGroff.  It’s a simple menu, with a good mix of classics, variations on some classics and unique drinks to “Milk & Honey”.  They also offer quite a good selection of wines, with many French champagnes, followed by a selection of red and white wines from all over the world. 

My first order for the night was an “Aviation No. 1”. This consisted of Calvados (apple brandy), Cassis (black-current liqueur), Absinthe and Lime juice. It’s not a drink for everyone, the Absinthe cuts through the other flavours, but it doesn’t over power them. It’s a complex drink which is refreshing, but still needs to be drunk slowly.  Take out the Absinthe and this drink would be far more appealing to the masses, but then it would be boring and lack flavour.  I loved it. Absinthe is a hard spirit to work with, but this cocktail was balanced perfectly. 

Our second drink for the night was the under-rated classic, a drink called the “Last Word”. It’s a mixture of Gin, Maraschino liqueur, Chartreuse and Lime juice. I chose this drink for similar reason as the “Aviation No 1”. Like Absinthe, Chartreuse is a hard spirit to work with and it’s interesting to see how a bartender can balance this strong flavour amongst the other ingredients. Once again it was served to perfection. This is another cocktail that is not for everyone, but even if you don’t like Chartreuse, you can appreciate how well the bartender has mixed this classic. 

When we left “Milk & Honey” we were all very impressed with the experience. The staff were not pretentious (which is not common in exclusive member only bars), the drinks were fantastic and we all celebrated my birthday in style. Hopefully we’ll return to “Milk & Honey” soon. 

Milk & Honey's

“Aviation No. 1”

Shaken and Strained into a Cocktail glass

- 30ml Calvados (Apple Brandy)

- 30ml Creme de Cassis (Black-current Liqueur)

- 10ml Absinthe

- 30ml Lime Juice

Milk & Honey’s

“The Last Word”

Shaken and Strained into a Cocktail Glass

- 30ml Gin

- 15ml Maraschino Liqueur

- 15ml Chartreuse

- 30ml Lime Juice

LAB Bar & The Soho District

Cara and I have now been living in London for close to a year. In that time we have seen some amazing things and have been to some awesome bars. One of our frequent watering holes is a cocktail bar in London’s west end called “LAB Bar”. LAB stands for the ‘London Academy of Bartending’. It was a bar designed to teach and hone the skills of bartenders who have a love and passion for bar work. This is why we love this place so much, it’s full of people who love good cocktails, just like us.

LAB Bar is located in Londons Soho district, a part of the nations capital which is famous for being the home to top bars, restaurants and entertainment. The Soho district is also known for it’s “non prejudice” attitude. A place in London where no one will judge you on your fashion, race, age, sexuality, etc.  Aside from LAB bar, there is a smorgasbord of cocktail bars to choose from in the area. All appealing to different demographics in Soho.

Soho has had a long and turbulent past. It’s reputation for being the home of sex and drugs is slowly changing into being the place for fashion and entertainment. Although the stigma is a hard one to shake. Having said that, bars and restaurants have no trouble filling their premises with party goers. On weekends, the local council closes off the streets to accommodate the thousands of people who flock to Soho every weekend.

LAB Bar is considered one of the best bars in Soho. It was founded in 1996 and was designed as a training school for passionate bartenders. At LAB, cocktails are not just drinks. They are works of art. The staff pride them self on presentation. Some of the garnishes used on these drinks are beyond comprehension. The fine knife work shown by the bartenders would give a michelin star chef a run for their money.  Once you get past the amazing garnishes, the cocktails themselves are perfectly balanced. The combination of flavours used in these drinks are well thought through not to mention unique.

Some of our favourite concoctions are the “Red Hot Chilli Pepper”, “Slap & Tickle”, “Rapaska” plus many more. Truth be known, you are hard pressed to find something on the menu that doesn’t sound amazing. The menu at LAB is like a bible of unique drinks. The problem is, that it’s too big.  It takes quite some time to go through the menu. It comes to a point where you are rushed into picking a cocktail at random.

Sometimes picking random cocktail is the best thing to do when you can’t make up your mind, and that is what we often have to do when we are at LAB.  Cara and I always enjoy our nights out in Soho. I’m sure we’ll spend many more nights in LAB before we leave London.

“Rapaska”

Shaken & Strained over Crushed Ice
 - 60ml Raspberry Vodka
 - 30ml Passionfruit Puree
 - 30ml Rasperry Puree
 - Dashes of Lime juice, Apple juice & Orange juice
Garnished with a granny smith apple fan

     

                              “Red Hot Chilli Pepper”

                     Stirred with Crushed Ice in a Tall Glass

                     - 60ml Lemongrass & Chilli infused Tequila

                     - 30ml Homemade Vanilla Sugar Syrup

                     - Topped with Ginger Beer

                       Floated on top:

                     - Goldschlager (Cinnamon Schnapps)

                     - Sparkling Wine

                    Garnished with Lemongrass & Chilli

     “Slap & Tickle"
  Shaken and Strained over cubed Ice
- 30ml Koko Kanu Coconut Rum
- 30ml Plymouth Sloe Gin
- 15ml Lime Juice
- 15ml Lemon Juice
- 15ml Mango Syrup
Garnished with lemon & lime rind, wrapped around a maraschino cherry.

The Love for a Good Cup of Tea

There is no doubt that people in the UK love a good cup of tea. So when Cara and I were out and about on one of our many adventures around London and we came across a bar which sold a cocktail called the “Earl-Grey-tini”. After seeing this,  I couldn’t resist and had to try it.

The cocktail used a london dry gin infused with earl grey tea.  The method of infusion has been around for hundreds of years. Starting as a way of making medicine, the technique of mixing herds with hot water quickly became a popular drink. Tea grew in popularity throughout Asia. It has been said that the Chinese have been drinking herbal tea since the 10th century BC.  But is wasn’t until the 1700’s that tea expanded out side of Asia and was brought to europe. At first it was considered a luxury hot beverage, only drunk be the rich, but it soon became a drink that everyone could enjoy.

As mentioned, the “Earl-grey-tini” uses earl grey infused gin. To get the best flavour from an infused spirit, the rule of thumb is that the spirit should be infused for a minimum of 3 days, but with tea being made to dissolve, I doubt it takes that long to get a good tea flavoured gin. The cocktail starts with 45ml of earl grey infused london dry gin, 30ml of sugar syrup, a squeeze of lemon juice and dash of egg white, to give the cocktail a nice texture. Its then shaken with ice and strained into a martini glass.

When I tried this drink, i was quite impressed. It was just like a refreshing ice tea. The lemon juice and sugar syrup balanced each other nicely. The tea infused gin, brought another flavour which made this cocktail very enjoyable. Lastly, the egg white brought all the ingredients together making this smooth in texture to drink.


"The Earl-grey-tini”
In a cocktail shaker:
45ml Earl grey infused gin
30ml Sugar Syrup
A squeeze of lemon juice
Dash of Egg White
Shake with ice and serve in
a Martini Glass

Football, Work, Cocktails & The OXO Tower

Well.... What a busy last month It’s been for Cara and myself. It’s been a long time since my last blog post, which is mainly due to us starting our new jobs. However just before we started, we were fortunate to make a trip to Wigan and visit some of my family, and we also got the opportunity to see the opening game of the premier league season for the Mighty Wigan Athletic. It was our first time to the north of England, and despite the unpredictable weather, it was an amazing trip. We’ll defiantly be back.

So then it was time to begin our working lives in the UK, and begin to earn some coin to fund our upcoming adventures. During our intense 4 weeks of work, Cara and I did manage to make it out to a bar that I’ve been dieing to check out, The OXO Tower Cocktail Bar. The OXO Tower has an interesting history, which was part of the reason we wanted to go and have a look. The tower is located on the banks of the River Thames. It originally started off as a power station, before it was taken over by a large UK meat company (The same company who produces the OXO stock cubes). The company, "Liebig Extract”, converted the power station into a storage warehouse. The company wanted to display the three letters “O.X.O” in neon lights at the top of the tower. But when the request was refused, they decided to rebuild the top of the tower to include this advertising into the frame work of the windows.  Because the framework of the windows were conveniently shaped like a circle, a cross and another circle, nothing could be done to stop it.

In the early 1990’s, the tower was refurbished to include offices, housing, art galleries and on the top floor was the cocktail bar and restaurant. When Cara and I arrived on the top floor of the OXO Tower Bar, we instantly felt under-dressed. The bar was packed with businessmen or people who looked like they were off to the theatre later that night. We didn’t let this stop us from taking a seat and looking over their extensive cocktail menu. With a menu which consisted of house specialities, classic variations and genuine classics, it was hard for us to make a decision. Cara went for a sparkling cocktail called “Undercover Lover”. This consisted of citrus flavoured vodka, Licor 43 (a Spanish vanilla flavoured liqueur), Frais de Bois (a type of strawberry liqueur), shaken with crushed strawberries, strained into a champagne glass and topped up with prosecco. Instantly, Cara told me that it was too sweet. After I had a try, I 100% agreed with her. It was like drinking pure strawberry sugar. On paper, the drink sounded very nice, but when i thought about it after, I soon realised that there was nothing to balance the sweetness of the 2 liqueurs used. So the “Undercover Lover” I’m sure will be a great drink for the sweet-tooth, but It didn’t go down to well with us. My choice on the other hand, was a winner. I choose a cocktail called “The Port of London”. Judging by the title, I guessed it had port in the drink, and having never had a port cocktail before, I had to give it a go. The Port of London, consisted of Port, Beefeater Gin, lemon juice, lime juice and topped up with a bitter lemon mixer. This drink had all the qualities we were looking for. It was well balanced, refreshing, there was no dominate flavour, with every sip you got something different out of the drink.

So we spent an our afternoon, sipping our cocktails, looking over the Thames towards St Pauls Cathedral, and after an intense last few weeks of work, we finally had a chance to reflect and remember why we are over here and how lucky we both are.




The OXO Tower’s
“Undercover Lover”
(In a mixing glass)
15ml Ketel One Citrus Vodka
15ml Licor 43
15ml Frais De Bois
Muddled Strawberries
Shaken and strained into a champagne glass
Topped with Prosecco

“Port of London”
(Built in a tall glass)
30ml House Port
30ml Beefeater Gin
15ml fresh lemon juice
15ml fresh lime juice
Topped up with Bitter Lemon

Sipping Bramble’s at the “Gherkin"

When you walk the streets of London, you see and learn the history of famous buildings, places and other landmarks. Places like the famous clock tower (“Big Ben”), was opened in 1858. Even older is Buckingham Palace, which was built in 1705. Then there is Westminster Abbey, which has been around since 1245. I could go on and on, but basically, the architecture in London is steeped in history. It seems like every building you look at always involves detailed stone carvings and fine decoration. So when you find yourself staring at a building that is not even 10 years old, and it’s shaped like a gherkin, You can’t miss it.  It stands out like a sore thumb. A smooth curved building which consists of almost entirely glass and standing 40 floors high, 180 metres tall. It is quite impressive. We decided on one of our day trips to London to visit the famous “Gherkin” and to check out a bar that was inside.

The bar was located at the base of the building and we found a nice spot outside to sit. After we spent a few moments looking up at the giant structure we decided to consult the cocktail menu. The menu consisted of all the classics. One of the classics on the menu was the ‘Bramble’. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a classic Bramble and being a cocktail that was invented in London, this was the perfect opportunity to order one. The Bramble was invented in 1984 by Dick Bradsell at Fred’s Club located in the Soho district of London. It a simple mixture of Gin, lemon juice, sugar syrup and blackberry liqueur.

To make this drink you shake together with ice 45ml gin, 15ml lemon juice and a dash of sugar syrup. Traditionally this cocktail is served in a short spirit glass, but it can be served in a tall glass. Finish the drink with a drizzle of blackberry liqueur (Chambord or Creme de Mure work great). Garnish with either a slice of lemon or a blackberry.

The Bramble is a simple but very refreshing drink.  Cara and I had a great afternoon, sipping on a classic London cocktail and admiring a modern London icon.



"The Bramble"
In a Shaker add,
45ml Gin
15ml Lemon Juice
A Dash of Sugar Syrup
Shake and pour into your glass
Drizzle a dash of Chambord or Creme De Mure over the top, Garnish with either a Lemon Slice or a Blackberry

The Original & The Best: The Classic Martini

Looking back at my previous blog posts i realised that I've covered a wide variety of drinks. So when thinking about what i should write about next, i was shocked when i realised that I'd not even covered the classic martini. This is the "grand daddy" of all cocktails, it is almost the definition of cocktail.

The classic martini is probably the one drink that has had the single biggest influence on bar culture today. But with the status of being "the most famous cocktail of all-time", comes the many bartenders who claim to being the original creator of the martini. So there is no definitive explanation for this cocktails origins. However, I'll share with you one story which I've heard and like to believe. It involves the 'godfather' of mixology, Jerry Thomas. Jerry Thomas was a bartender who wrote and published the first ever cocktail book in 1862, "How to mix drinks". Thomas worked in San Francisco at the Occidental Hotel. It is said that in 1850, a traveller on his way to the town of Martinez, California stopped off at the hotel and asked Thomas to make him something special. Thomas proceeded to serve the man a drink which consisted of gin, vermouth, a dash of bitters and a maraschino cherry to garnish. Jerry Thomas named it 'the Martinez' after the town that the man was travelling too.  In 1870, the Martinez was adapted by Julio Richelieu. Richelieu took out the bitters and substituted the cherry for an olive, and the martini has never looked back from then.

Making the martini is simple. I'll go through the process which works best for me. Start with a shaker, add ice along with 30ml of vermouth. Stir the vermouth with the ice, the idea being is that you want to coat the ice with the vermouth. Once stirred well, strain the vermouth into a chilled martini glass (it's a good idea to have a couple of martini glasses pre-chilled in a fridge to save you a bit of time). Roll the vermouth around the inside of the glass, lining the glass, then discard. Now go back to your original shaker, pour 60ml of gin (or vodka, depending on what type of martini your making) over the ice and stir again. The longer your stir the more diluted your martini will be, therefore most probably easier to drink. Lastly, strain your shaker into your martini glass and garnish with either an olive or a lemon zest. I like to serve a martini with 3 olives. Tell the customer to eat the first olive at the start of the cocktail, the second olive when they get half way through, and the last olive at the very end of the drink. I've had good feedback from customers about doing this. I find it adds to the overall martini drinking experience.

I can not stress enough how important it is to use a good quality spirit in martini's.  Cheap booze will ruin your drink.  If your paying top dollar for a martini, you want value for money. My picks for quality gins are Tanqueray 10 or Plymouth Gin. As far as vodka's, I can't go past Grey Goose, but it's always up to your personal choice. Hope you enjoy your martini's.

In a Shaker:
Add Ice & 30ml Vermouth and stir
Strain vermouth into a chilled martini glass and rinse the glass with the vermouth.
Discard Vermouth
Add to original shaker, 60ml of Gin or Vodka
Stir well and strain into martini glass
garnish with olives or lemon zest.

The Long Island Iced Tea

I personally am not a big fan of the Long island iced tea. I believe that it's a cocktail that people have with the aim to get drunk. People don't order this drink to appreciate the fine qualities of the spirits used in this drink, they order it to get "smashed". Despite my own personal dislike for this cocktail, it's hard to turn my back on it. It is one of the most frequently ordered cocktails in the world. It has played a massive role in bar culture today. So it would be wrong of me to not feature it in one of my blog postings.

The long island iced tea is a simple built cocktail which consists of 15ml vodka, gin, white rum, tequila and cointreau (or triple sec), a dash of lemon juice, served over ice and topped up with coke.  As i mentioned earlier, even though i'm not a big lover of this classic cocktail, as a bartender, I feel it is important to appreciate it's origins. The first long island iced tea was said to be served by Robert Butts in the mid 1970s. Butts was a bartender who worked at the Oak Beach Inn in the town of Babylon, Long Island, New York. He came up with the idea of mixing 5 different white spirits with coke. The cocktail had instant success and the not long after the variations began such as, a Tokyo iced tea made with Midori in place of the vodka, or a Cuban iced tea, made with dark rum, as well as white rum.

To make this cocktail, it is extremely simple. Get yourself a tall glass, and pour 15ml vodka, gin, tequila, white rum and cointreau and lemon juice. Lastly add ice and top with coke. And thats it!

Have fun with this drink and have a go at creating your own "Iced tea" variation.

In a Tall Glass:
15ml Vodka
15ml Gin
15ml Tequila
15ml Cointreau
15ml White Rum
15ml Lemon Juice
Add Ice and top up with Coke

The Negroni & The Americano

When i first had these cocktails, I must admit, I found them hard to drink. They are complex flavours for your palette to take if you've never drunk them before. However, over time my palette developed and i started to gain great appreciation for these classics. The Negroni and the Americano are designed to be great palette cleansers, they are "aperitif" cocktails. By definition, an aperitif cocktail is a drink served before a meal. It's meant to stimulate appetite, usually accompanied by cheese, crackers or dips.  The inspiration for the Negroni, came from another classic cocktail called the "Americano". The Americano was created during the 1860's by an Italian bartender, Gaspare Campari. And yes... Gaspare Campari was also the inventor of the famous spirit, Campari. Gaspare was a master drink maker. He was producing spirits and aperitif's since the age of 14. His trademark aperitif, Campari, was sold throughout Italy and was gaining momentum in popularity though Europe. Gaspare refused to share the recipe for his "Campari" with anyone and to this day the distillery is still owned be the family. There is said to be only 1 person in the family at any one time who knows the true recipe for Campari.  With the popularity of Campari growing in during the 1860's, Gaspare came up with the perfect cocktail to go with it. The Americano was a mix of Campari, sweet vermouth and topped with soda water.  He named it this because he noticed that Americans seemed to enjoy this drink whilst they travelled through Italy, more than the locals.

We leap forward 50 years... The Americano was now already well know, some might say it was a classic even back then. The year was 1919, at Cafe Giacosa in Florance, Italy. Count Camillo Negroni asked the bartender to add some strength to his Americano, by substituting the soda water, for a shot of gin. This cocktail was an instant hit at that bar and slowly began to be a regular drink served all over Italy. Count Negroni even opened his own distillery and attempted to sell pre-made versions of his Americano variation. This version of the drink was popular for a little while, but like most things, the original is always the best.  These 2 classic cocktails play an important roll in the bar culture today. They are one of the major reasons that Campari is stocked in almost every bar in the world.

Making the Americano is as easy as making a mix drink. Start with a short glass (rocks glass). Add 30ml of sweet vermouth, 30ml of Campari, some ice and then top up with soda water. The Negroni is slightly more involved. Get your shaker, add 30ml sweet vermouth, 30ml Campari, 30ml gin ( I like to use Plymouth gin, but it's entirely up to you), add lots of ice and stir. In the Americano, we had soda water diluting the straight spirit, so with the Negroni, it's important to try and dilute the spirit as much as you can by stirring ice through it, or else the straight alcohol may be too much for you to handle. Once you've stirred for long enough, strain your shaker into a chilled martini glass. I like to garnish with an orange zest or orange wedge. It works well and brings out the flavours in the Campari.

Like i said, these are tough cocktails to drink if your palette isn't used to them, so play around with Campari and ease your way into drinking it.  Hope you enjoy the Americano and the Negroni.

The Americano:

30ml Campari

30ml Sweet Vermouth

Add Ice

Top up with Soda Water

The Negroni:

In a Shaker,

30ml Campari

30ml Sweet Vermouth

30ml Gin

Add ice and stir

Once stirred well, Strain into chilled Martini Glass

The Gin & Tonic Re-Invented

The gin & tonic is said to be the first cocktail ever created. Even though today we consider this drink a simple mix drink, the gin and tonic still has great significances in cocktail history.  I decided to re-invent this classic drink, and turn it from being just a mix drink, into a modern day cocktail. 

When getting inspiration for my new gin & tonic, i turned to the history books and decided to try and recreate the rivalry between England and France but in the form of a cocktail. How can i possibly do this i hear you ask, well it's simple. I begin with Plymouth Gin, but not just normal Plymouth gin, i chose Plymouth sloe gin. Sloe (pronounced "slow") gin is gin which is made with sloe berries, also known as blackthorn berries. The gin is made by distilling the spirit with these plum-like berries. Sugar is then added to make the gin sweeter and takes the edge off the bitterness of the berries.  Plymouth gin has been produced in England since 1793. So with 30ml of Plymouth sloe gin (representing England), we add 30ml of french pinot gris wine. Pinot gris is a European grape varietal made in the french style of wine (obviously representing France). 

Now to explain why…. Pinot gris is a full flavoured fruity wine. To be more specific, when smelling, it has floral characteristics, then when tasted, you may pick up fruits like pear, apple or melon, depending on the producer.  This fruity wine works in perfect harmony with the sloe berries.   So now we have covered the rivalry between England & France. My point being, even 2 great rivals can still come together and combine to make something special.

I finish this "G&T" cocktail with the juice of half a lime (which always compliments gin well, and is commonly served with a traditional gin and tonic), lastly a pinch of cracked black pepper, just to give the drink a subtle kick when it hits the tongue.  Now, just add ice and top up with tonic water.

If your tired of the traditional "G&T", this might be a funky alternative for you.

This cocktail may sound complex but it is really simple. 

In a tall glass:

30ml Plymouth sloe gin

30ml Pinot Gris Wine

juice of half a lime

pinch of cracked black

Add ice

Top with tonic water