The shifting sands of the dune-scape that is COVID Britain 2020 have forced us to tweak our quarterly/seasonal menu programme. One of the biggest challenges has been to draw up a reactive weekly offering (see what we got a lot of and make it into something) to best manage back-of-house operations. Because, when you live in constant fear of being closed again, the last thing you want is a load of literal liquid assets.

Useful notes on something that applies to putting together any cocktail or drink to dazzle (could equally apply to making wine or beer-making for instance, although that isn’t done in a ‘live’ environment as of a bartender mixing a drink on the spot at the bar). Think of any such drink to draw delight from as needing three parts: the base, the body and the perfume…

Sweet, sour, booze.

This little triptych of ingredients form the basis for a wealth of cocktails and mixed drinks that have been adored, pored over and modified since such a time that these recipes were recorded. We know the ones: sidecar, daiquiri, margarita; and we know the genres: swizzles, fixes, rickeys. All have been ripped in two and rebuilt with cut bases of spirits, flavoured syrups, botanical enhancements, fire and smoke, alchemy and voodoo. One thing that remains largely untouched however, is one of those three key elements: the sour. Lemon and lime (occasionally grapefruit) sit unchallenged at the heart of all.

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By the time this reaches you it may, nay probably will, already be too late.