Day three found us on a southbound train down to the beautiful coastal city of Plymouth, England to tour the Plymouth Gin Distillery. The town itself is as steeped in history as it is beautiful, having been the port where the Mayflower set off for America and residing in an area that’s thrived for over a thousand years. The ocean breeze was so clean & sweet it felt like my lungs were growing with each breath as we stood for photo ops outside the distillery.
After a hearty lunch of fish & chips in a cozy (crammed) seaside cafe, we embarked on tour of the Plymouth Distillery and comparative nosing in the Refectory bar with Plymouth’s own esteemed Master Distiller, Sean Harrison.
Newly armed with a wealth of knowledge on the gin-making process, each of us was given a chance to make our own mini-batch of gin, wherein we were able to select our own mix of botanicals and experience a micro version of the distillation process. This was a high point of the journey for many, allowing students of the craft a rare chance to meddle with the ingredients, control the production process and reap the rewards (or disastrous results, depending on the distiller) of their efforts.
We capped the night with a magnificent seven course meal hosted at Tanners Restaurant, tucked behind the lovely St. Andrew’s church. Our accommodations at the St Elizabeth’s House hotel on the outskirts of Plymouth, a grand Elizabethan house situated in the gorgeous ancient village of Plympton St Maurice and surrounded by acres of beautifully landscaped gardens, were breathtaking. Late-night cocktails in the hotel bar, which we had all to ourselves, made for a massively memorable conclusion to our experience in a town so lushly beautiful and rich with history.
Returning to London the following day, we wound our way through the city’s busy corridors to the infamous 69 Colebrooke Row cocktail bar, we embarked on a molecular mixology session with Tony Conigliaro, 2009 Bartender of the Year and one of the world’s pioneering cocktail alchemists. The man’s mastery of his craft and ability to orchestrate new cocktails is utterly mindblowing. Tony’s belief that some of the best drinks begin as concepts allows him to build a framework of flavor and, using advanced pressure machinery called a Rotor Vapor that can actually isolate individual liquid molecules, meticulously craft a taste based as much on chemical reaction as actual ingredient components.
Mr. Conigliaro is responsible for many innovative new drinks making their mark on the revitalized cocktail culture, among them being a perfect match for tequila lovers who aren’t fond of margaritas: The Gonzales. Made with tequila, caramel liqueur, honey water tuberose hydrosol and topped with a lemon twist, the concoction provides a fantastic, classy alternative to those who may be tired of that old triple sec pitcher mixture.
The Negroni, Tom Collins and White Lady were my favorites among the gin cocktails we became (quite) familiar with on our English journey. To my bewilderment, my top selection is an odd & frothy concoction called an English Breakfast – consisting of earl grey infused gin, grand marnier, orange marmalade, lemon and egg whites. A gin cocktails piece is soon to follow, but for those timid about entering the complex and rewarding world of this unique spirit, the blackberry-based Bramble is a very easy entry-point cocktail to get you started.
Bramble
2 oz. Beefeater gin
1 oz. fresh lemon juice
1 barspoon of simple syrup
1/2 oz. Creme de Mure (blackberry liqueur)
Lemon slice and blackberry, for garnish.
Add gin, lemon juice & sugar to rocks glass. Stir, add crushed ice & top with Creme de Mure.
Garnish with a lemon slice and a blackberry or three.
Returning back to the States after a lovely farewell dinner (complete with private musical accompaniment) at London’s gorgeous modern-boutique Sanderson Hotel and a night on some of the finest linens I’ve ever had the pleasure of sleeping on, I found myself alienated at my local cocktail lounge. I was simply dumbfounded by the rampant reference to inferior gins on this side of the pond. Was everyone as uninformed and dull of palette as I was before this journey? Was is possible that lesser brands had entrenched themselves so deeply in the cocktail scene that the true quality was overlooked?
Those ideas, to put it in British terms, were quite simply poppycock. Bullocks. Hogwash. American cocktail enthusiasts who have done their research know where true quality lies, and bartenders worth their weight in garnishes wouldn’t be caught dead suggesting Bombay Sapphire as a gin, whether for martinis or less traditional cocktails. Plymouth and Beefeater long ago set a standard of quality that they continue to maintain hundreds of years into their prosperous existence, and they stand unrivaled in quality and taste among the most popular major brands of gin in the world.
And yes, I now consider myself a fan of gin. True, quality gin, that is.
History lesson: the term “Dutch Courage” comes from the fact that English soldiers fighting in Holland during the 17th century drank jenever, the Dutch precursor to gin, to steady their nerves before battle.
Undying gratitude and thanks to the lovely Sarah Bessette and Ashley Barrett, who saw to it that every moment of our Tale of Two Cities experience would forever remain a highlight in our traveling memories.
