Tuesday, October 28, 2008

[st. germain rum drink]

1 1/2 oz Hurricane Rum
3/4 oz St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur
2 dashes Nasturtium Bitters
Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass pre-rinsed with Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur. Flamed lime peel over drink (discarded after rimming the edge of glass).

For my second drink at Deep Ellum, Max Toste wanted to make me something with the nasturtium bitters I had just given him. After telling him that they worked well with rum, he asked if I approved of St. Germain.

The rum he chose is a relatively dry one from Cisco Brewers in Nantucket, MA. Thankfully it was not a sweeter one since I was not expecting a 2:1 ratio with the already pretty sweet St. Germain. While the drink ended up being not overly sweet, the St. Germain did overwhelm the ginger liqueur and nasturtium bitter flavors. However, it did not overwhelm the flamed lime which gave a great aroma to the drink. Lime oils are so rarely used by bartenders, especially compared to orange and lemon, that it was a rather novel and pleasing note. It was also good that Max discarded the peel after the flaming; while some are a fan of the carbon residue, I prefer it not to be present as an off-tasting smudge across my beverage.

Also, Max did a little experimenting with the nasturtium bitters and said that they worked well with blanco tequila. A similar observation about nasturtiums was made by the Intoxicated Zodiac who made nasturtium-infused tequila for her margarita-like drink called La Flor Picante.

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