Читать книгу ROSÉ MADE ME DO IT - Colleen Graham - Страница 8
ОглавлениеHere’s the secret to mixing up a great cocktail: have fun! There are lots of tricks that bartenders use to create spectacular drinks, but anyone can learn the basic techniques (they’re not difficult), so the most important thing is to have a good time. You might make mistakes – we all do – and that’s okay. It’s just a drink that will be gone in a few minutes; the real joy in mixing cocktails is the exploration, discovering what you like and don’t like.
That said, a few tips will help you make the best cocktails possible:
• Use premium-quality spirits that you wouldn’t mind drinking on their own. There’s no need to pay for a super pricey bottle of rosé, though, as wine is typically a cocktail mixer that allows you to save a bit of money.
• Fresh ingredients are best. This is particularly true of citrus juices, but if you have the ability to juice other fruits, say with an electric juicer, that’s even better. And don’t be afraid of homemade mixers like Simple Syrup – they’re easy, cheap and fun.
• Chill your glassware, especially if the cocktail recipe doesn’t include ice in the glass. Your drinks will stay colder longer and be more refreshing.
If you find a drink that you think needs to be tweaked, by all means do it! Cocktail recipes are meant to be adjusted according to personal taste, and everyone’s tastes are different. After all, I’m not drinking it – you are.
BAR GEAR
There’s no need to buy a full bar kit unless you’d like to. With just a few of the essentials, you can mix up a great variety of drinks.
A cocktail shaker is a must. A standard three-piece shaker with a built-in strainer will do most home bartenders just fine. Stainless steel shakers are the best and will last a lifetime. If you go the pro route and pick up a Boston shaker (one piece is a shaking tin and the other a mixing glass), be sure to buy a Hawthorne strainer as well.
A bar spoon is also a good investment because the long, twisted handle makes stirring a breeze, especially in tall glasses. For precise measuring, a jigger (a two-ended cup that measures shots and half-shots) is invaluable and allows for the greatest control of flavour balance. Finally, add a muddler to your shopping list. The freshest cocktails – mojitos and juleps included – require this handy stick, resembling a miniature baseball bat. (More on this here.)
ICE
It’s a given that high-quality ingredients will produce better-tasting mixed drinks, and the same rule applies to ice. It is the one ingredient that almost every cocktail has in common, so it’s extremely important!
You will use a lot of ice, both in the serving glass and/or the cocktail shaker. Make your ice with distilled water for the best results, and do always have a fresh stock of ice in the freezer so that you don’t run out. If there’s a tray that’s been sitting there for a couple of months unused, toss it away and start again. Try to avoid storing ice near fish and other pungent frozen foods, too, because it will absorb some of their flavours. Fishy drinks are definitely not good!
For a drink like the Berry Rosé Julep, you’ll need shaved ice (okay, it’s not necessary, but it is really nice). If you don’t have an ice maker that has that capability, toss some ice in your blender and give it a few whirls, then get rid of any excess water. Another fun way to crush ice (a little chunkier than shaved ice) is to whack it with your muddler. Put some ice cubes in a sealable plastic bag or a Lewis bag (made of cloth just for this purpose) and whack it into smaller bits. It’s also an activity that provides great stress relief!
A couple of the recipes also utilise novelty ice cubes as part of the drink. The Rosé Parade freezes wine into ice cubes, while the Sparkling Borage Cocktail and the Blushing Fizz both freeze flowers inside the ice.
SHAKING AND STIRRING
There are two primary methods for mixing cocktails: shaking and stirring. They’re both easy, but there are tricks to doing it right. For the first, fill the cocktail shaker with ice (about five or six cubes). Shake for at least 10 seconds or until the outside of the shaker gets nice and frosty. Some drinks are stirred and you’ll want to do this with a smooth, steady turn of the wrist (keep your elbow still, it’s not cake batter!) for at least 30 seconds.
With either technique, always strain out the mixing ice unless the recipe indicates otherwise. The agitation during mixing breaks down the ice so it will melt faster, resulting in a drink that quickly becomes watered down. For drinks served on the rocks, use fresh ice in the serving glass.
MUDDLING
The fresher the drinks you want to mix up, the more you will fall in love with muddling. It’s a fantastic mixing technique used to juice the majority of fruits and to extract the essence from herbs, creating a flavoursome crushed base for a drink out of fresh ingredients. Once you learn the value of a muddler, you’ll wonder where this amazing tool has been all your life!
The process of muddling is incredibly simple: place the ingredients to be muddled in the bottom of a mixing glass or shaker and press them with the flat end of the muddler until well mixed (a minute or two usually does it). Use a twisting motion with your wrist as you push down to accentuate the mixing.
Fruits that are to be muddled should be cut into small pieces (a few centimetres). Citrus fruits work well as half slices and wedges, and there is no need to remove the peel. For leafy herbs like mint and basil, tear the leaves or slap them between your palms before dropping them into the glass to maximise the flavour. Other herbs (such as lavender and rosemary) and spices can be tossed in whole, as long as any stems have been removed beforehand.
SPARKLING ROSÉ
Quite a few of the recipes you’ll find in this book call for sparkling rosé. If you already have a bottle of still rosé open, don’t rush to the shops for a bottle of bubbly; you can mimic sparkling rosé by adding a little soda water to still rosé. Just a couple of splashes in a glass or so of wine will give a nice effervescence without overly diluting it. The other option is to add a splash of soda water directly to the drink after pouring the still wine.
SANGRIAS AND PUNCHES
We’re dealing with wine recipes here, so you should expect to find a few sangrias and other wine punches. Each recipe was written for 170ml (6fl oz) servings, and the number of servings each recipe produces is indicated. If you need more or less punch, simply increase or decrease each ingredient accordingly, as long as you always keep the ingredients in proportion.
You’ll also see that the sangria recipes suggest ‘marrying’ the flavours by chilling the drink overnight. This is the best way to create punches that use fresh fruits. As they sit, the liquids absorb the taste of the fruits, giving you a concoction the following day that is one beautiful blend of flavours!
IN THE BLENDER
Yes, even rosé can end up in a frozen cocktail! If you haven’t enjoyed a frosé yet, you’re in for a real treat. For the best blended drinks, chop the ice and any fruits in the blender before adding the liquid ingredients.
Most recipes call for around a cup of ice, which is five or six average-sized cubes. After blending, if the result is a little too thin for your taste, add one or two more ice cubes and blend again. And if the cocktail is too thick? Add a splash of one of the drink’s liquid ingredients.
DRESS IT UP
Garnishes are often an afterthought, especially if you’re just mixing up a drink for yourself. But they do look pretty, and they can help to make a good impression when serving guests, so it’s a good idea to practise creating them as often as you can. Additions such as citrus slices and twists, as well as herbs, can add to the flavour of a drink, too. You can squeeze a little juice in as you drink, gently press a lemon twist over the cocktail to express its essence, or drop in something like rosemary and let the herb’s flavour slowly infuse into the liquid. The smallest touches often take a cocktail from okay to spectacular.
Rimming a glass is another fun option that can be used with almost any cocktail. In these pages, for example, you’ll find the No Way Rosé Margarita, which calls for a sugar rim. Begin by wetting the rim of the glass with a liquid in the recipe (with many cocktails, a citrus wedge works perfectly). Then roll the rim of the glass around in a small dish filled with white granulated sugar until it’s coated evenly. Still holding the glass upside down, gently tap off any excess sugar and you’re ready to pour the drink. This fancy little trick goes a step further with the Birthday Cake Mimosa, in which you’ll dip the rim first into some delicious icing, followed by some coloured sprinkles!
