Savoury deliciousness with Belvedere Bloody Mary

I had the rare pleasure last week to sit next to the most glamorous woman in drinks, Belvedere ambassador and head of spirit creation Claire Smith. She was in the lucky country launching her latest expression of Belvedere, Bloody Mary.

The spirit is crafted out of a blend of rye based macerated distillates. For those of you who don’t spend your days talking distillation, that means that a whole lot of vegetable or spices are chopped up and left in raw spirit to flavour it, the resulting liquid is then run through the still. Each individual flavour is distilled on its own and then blended together into the final product, to ensure a consistent tasting liquid in every bottle.

The Bloody Mary is flavoured with tomato, black pepper, horseradish, capsicum, chilli, vinegar and lemon. The tasting notes claim a dramatic an complex nose, and I’d agree that the result is unlike much that can be readily found bottled for consumption. It performs well enough on it’s own, bringing memories of mile-high Bloody Mary’s flooding to my mind.

In cocktails it lays down well with cucumber, elderflower, citrus, tomato juice and practically any herb. A delightful surprise can be found with some pineapple juice, a squeeze of lime, a dash of orange bitters and a good pinch of smoky paprika.

I’m playing with a bottle at home and am loving a world of savoury based creations that this spirit opens up.

Expect ten cents back from seventy bucks if you’re picking one up from Dan Murphy.

The Tuxedo

This drink is a much wetter take on the Martini, with a couple of flavorful additions. I like it because I get to have a traditionally dark spirits garnish, the brandied cherry, in a Gin cocktail.

The history of this one is mixed, appearing in the Savoy book, but also being associated with the Ritz in Paris. The use of Anis as opposed to Absinthe or Pastis, makes me lean toward the French on this one. Whichever way, it remains a great way to kick off a weekend.

The Tuxedo Cocktail

50 mls Tanqueray No. Ten, 20 mls Noilly Pratt, 5 mls Maraschino Liqueur, 5mls Marie Brizard Anis (substitue absinthe or pastis, should you have none) 3 dashes Fee Brother’s Orange Bitters.

Combine all ingredients in a tin over ice, stir and strain up. Garnish with a twist of lemon and a brandied cherry. Exhale, imbibe. Relax.

Oh Gosh! has got this recipe as well, although made with Hayman’s Old Tom Gin. I prefer the addition of the orange bitters, over the version without in Dale De Grof’s “Craft of the Cocktail”

MixMarch #15: The Martinez

Having finally found a bottle of Luxardo* Maraschino Liqueur, I thought it time to investigate a few drinks that had been sitting on my list of things to try for a while, and, with the Martini going up (and down) last night, here is a drink that some bartenders call the grandfather of the Martini. I’m not sure about that, but it sure is great. More floral than the Gin & It I wrote about earlier in the month, the bitters and maraschino really work some magic.

Martinez

• 40mls Genever
• 40mls Martini Rosso
• 5mls Maraschino Liqueur
• 2 dashes Orange Bitters

Stir and strain it up in the style of a Martini.

* I know Luxardo is not the only brand out there, but my first Aviation came from one of the straw wrapped bottles and having tried the finer drier versions, I’d still sway towards this one.

Go check out Science of Drink and the great unpacking of the different styles of Martinez, and see where I got this great shot of the drink as well.