The Worlds Best Cocktail Menu

We returned to London, after our short trip to the South, we were looking forward to exploring some more of the city’s top bars.  A place which was at the top of our list was a bar called “Callooh Callay”.  This bar was recently awarded (in my opinion) one of the highest honors in the cocktail bar world, “Best Cocktail Menu” in the world.  What makes a top cocktail menu I hear you ask? It's many things. Design and layout come into play, but mainly it comes down to the drinks them self. Bars who wish to win this accolade as Best Cocktail Menu, spend many hours researching consumer trends and fads, but still keep trying to push the boundaries with new ideas. The menu is constantly evolving due to what fruits and ingredients are in season and easy to obtain during certain times of the year. But most of all, the cocktails on a menu, must appeal to customers and keep them returning again for new drinking experiences. Industry experts thought that in 2012, "Callooh Callay" did this better than anywhere else in the world. So naturally Cara and I had to find out. 

We walked into a jammed packed bar. Unfortunately for us, not a spare seat to be found. However we were able to stand at the bar and watch the bartenders pump out drinks for the punters. As the famous menu was handed to us, we were instantly impressed by the unique layout of the list. The menu had been designed as a colour swatch book. It fanned out in front of us, with each colour on the menu, representing another cocktail.  Our first thoughts... It came across a little tacky, but it was hardly designed to be classy. It was designed to be fun, which it was. After browsing through the swatch book for quite some time, we each picked a cocktail that stood out to us. As it had been a usual cold day in London, Cara had picked a drink called "Grow a Pear". It was a cocktail which was served hot and consisted of Bacardi 8 year old rum, Rhubarb liqueur, pear puree, a pinch of cinnamon, almond syrup, lime juice, apple pieces and finally a dash of the London cocktail society's own "Christmas Bitters". This cocktail was like have a jazzed up 'Hot Toddy'. It was a perfect winter cocktail to have on a cold London day. It was fruity and sweet, but the pinch of cinnamon give it a subtle spicy after taste which made the drink unique and fun to drink. I was drawn to one of the award winning cocktails on Callooh Callay's menu, the "Ale of Two Cites". I was attracted to this drink due to it's use of the 42 Below Feijoa vodka, which I know from experience, can be very tough to use in cocktails due to it's over powering nature. This cocktail consisted of the Feijoa vodka, Punt e Mes (dark brown Italian vermouth), lime juice, apple juice, wild nettle cordial, and malt syrup. This mixture was all shaken together and served in a half pint glass, making for an interesting looking beer. I was pleasantly surprised that the Feijoa vodka didn’t take over at all. It was a perfectly balanced drink. It had a slight sour and citrus taste, with the flavours of the vodka lingering longer than anything else. Overall it was quite easy to drink. The only criticism is due to it being served in a beer glass, it didn’t look very appealing, and with no garnish the presentation did let it down a little. However it was still and enjoyable and most importantly, it tasted great. 

We departed from 'Callooh Callay’, satisfied that we'd seen enough and that we could tick it off the list of bars we must visit before leaving the UK. The menu was everything we had come to expect from a world class cocktail list. The drinks we’re creative, there was something for everyone and the presentation was unique. Maybe, before we arrive back to Australia, we may come across other menu which could rival the worlds best. 

“Grow a Pear”

Served Hot

30ml Bacardi 8 year old Rum

15ml Briottet Rhubarb Liqueur

15ml Pear puree

Pinch of Cinnamon

15ml Almond Syrup

15ml Lime juice

2 - 3 Pieces of Apple

Dash of London cocktail society christmas Bitters

Fill to the top with hot water and stir

“Ale of Two Cities”

In a shaker:

30ml 42 Below Feijoa

15ml Punt e Mes (Italian Vermouth)

15ml Lime Juice

30ml Apple Juice

Dash of Wild Nettle Cordial

Dash of Malt syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a half pint glass

Goodbye London... Hello Glasgow!!!

The Old Toll Booth of Glasgow

Glasgow’s bustling city centre

The time has come for Cara and I to start the next phase of our adventure. After our visit to Scotland earlier in the year, we’ve decided to move to Glasgow to live and work for the next 6 months.  To get into the new Scottish way of life, I’ve decided to pay tribute to one of the great scotch whisky cocktails, The ‘Hot Toddy’.

Like many of the classics, it’s history is rather vague. It has been said that the drink itself was created in India where the people used to mix fermented palm tree sap and hot water. The Scot’s claim that they created this drink in the 1700’s to make the strong taste of scotch whisky easier for women to drink. The locals also back up this story with a reference to the name “Toddy” in a poem by Allan Ramsey in 1721. Ramsey’s poem, “The Morning Interview” refers to the 'Todian Spring' (a.k.a Tod’s Well”) in Edinburgh which is the cities water supply. As water is one of the main ingredients in a hot toddy, the story seems to fit.

To make a basic hot toddy is very easy. Start with 2 - 3 slices of lemon. Add a tablespoon of honey. If you like your drinks quite sweet, you could also add a teaspoon of sugar along with the honey. Next, add 45ml of your favourite scotch whisky. I prefer a smokey, well aged whisky to give the drink the most flavour.  Lastly, top up your glass with hot water and stir the ingridients until it is blended together. If you are not a fan of scotch, rum or brandy are suitable substitute, but in Scotland making a hot toddy with anything else other than scotch whisky would be a crime.

I’m sure many hot toddy’s will be drunk over our time here in Scotland. We are both excited about exploring, living and working in Glasgow

“The Hot Toddy”
In a mug, or tall glass:
Add 2 - 3 lemon slices
Tablespoon of Honey
(Optional Teaspoon of Sugar)
45ml Scotch Whisky
Topped up with Hot Water

Why Not Heat & Spice Your Wine?

As summer comes to a close in the UK, we look ahead to the chilly winter and all of the tasty hot beverages which seems to be a tradition in the UK. One hot drink which Cara and I had not heard of before our travels is “Mulled” wine. It’s a popular concoction served in all the pubs and at all the winter festivals. During our visit to the Tower of London, I managed to pick up a sachet of mulled wine spices to mix on a cold winters night. Although winter is not here yet, I couldn’t resist trying it out early.

The term ‘mulled’ means to simply heat and spice a liquid. Red wine is the most common beverage to mull, but other drinks such as cider and mead are common too. Originally mulled wine was served as a medicine to keep people heathy over the cold winters. But it is now a popular winter beverage, most commonly drunk around christmas. 

One simple way to make mulled wine is to start with a cup of water (measurements may vary depending on how much you’d like to make). Add spices such as cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon. Boil the spices until most of the flavour has been extracted. Next add a cup of red wine, with a tablespoon of sugar. Bring the mixture to the boiling-point. Once all the sugar and spices have been dissolved, take the mixture off the boil. If you prefer a stronger drink, add a dash of brandy to the mixture. If you are a sweet tooth, you could also add honey with you mulled wine. If you fancy more citrus flavours, you could boil the wine with lemons or oranges. The flavours you add is only limited by your imagination. When serving mulled wine, It’s usually finished of with a slice of orange, but as mentioned, you have no limitations. Overall, you get a warming drink, which is a well balanced blend of spices and citrus flavours together with the smooth tannins of the red wine. 

I look forward to testing out some new mulled wine recipes over the winter.