Yesterday saw the launch of a spring cocktail menu that we’re particularly proud of. It also represented a significant step in the development of our bar.

Provenance is sacred at Poco and with this new bar menu we’ve looked hard at what imported ingredients we use and where there might be superior products available on our doorstep. We’ve stripped an array of imported spirits off our shelf and some exceptional bottles from Britains best producers have taken their place. The spirits that are still finding their way to us from foreign shores have all been selected for their impeccable ethics and quality. Organic and fairtrade rums, cachasa and amaretto.

Here’s a drink from our latest menu which really embodies our approach to food and drink, what our Exec Chef Tom Hunt calls ‘Root to Fruit’. It’s deliciously lemony and uses the entire lemon in achieving that, with a zesty twang coming from our Amalfi bitters; made by steeping the lemon peel, most often thrown away, in English grain vodka.

Alcohol-wise it’s made with Psycopomp gin, micro distilled in small batches just a few hundred mettres from our door in Montpelier; along with Collector Vermouth from the team out at the Ethicurean in Wrington.

Ingredients

35ml Psycopomp Gin
25ml Collector Vermouth
10ml Amalfi lemon juice
10ml Agave syrup
5 drops Amalfi Bitters
3 drops Bay Tincture

Method

As simple as could be…
-Combine all the ingredients and stir over ice until the Agave is thoroughly incorporated.
-Strain in to a high ball glass filled with fresh ice.
-Top with soda.

 
Garnish

-Lemon wheels & fresh bay leaves.

A bit more info…

Alone the gin and vermouth make an exceptional Lone Tree cocktail, stirred over ice. We wanted something a bit longer a Adding 10 ml of lemon juice and a few drops of our house Amalfi Bitters gives it a strong zesty undertone which is both refreshing, and a fantastic palate cleanser. A few more drops of a homemade bay tincture offers an aromatic note that really mingles nicely with the botanicals in the gin and vermouth both.

Really refreshing and perfect for the spring to come as we (hopefully) see more of the sun and as the thermometers start to push up with the wild garlic in tow.

one thing to note on the citrus is that, as we’ve been unable to source european/ non air freight limes, we’ve taken them off our menu altogether and instead use Organic Lemons from Amalfi in Sicily. These are the best lemons in the world and if you’ve seen them and tasted them they’re nothing like the diminutive, generic, waxed lemons we’re all too familiar with. They come at a premium but its so worth it. Once we’ve juiced them, rather than wasting the skin, we use it to make Amalfi marmalade which you’ll often find on sourdough as a breakfast option.

One other use for this excess Lemon rind though is to make a bitter tincture simply by removing the pith from the peel and macerating the peel in a base spirit. For this drink i’ve used an English grain vodka called Element 29. Unlike some of the most popular cocktail bitters like Angostura or Peychaud  this isn’t a complex balance of varied herbs and botanicals; rather a pure bitter lemon essence which is surprisingly versatile. I have a little dropper bottle at home for when the gin and tonics come to play.

The Bay tincture is again simply made by steeping fresh bay leaves in base spirit, for which i’ve once more used Element 29. It allows you to just add the essence of the flavour and aroma without effecting the overall strength and dilution of a drink.

As a health point we use agave syrup rather than sugar syrup wherever we can in our cocktails, it’s better for you and actually sweeter than sugar.