Nick Strangeway’s Royal Warranted PunchHow kind of Her Maj to give her subjects four days off this weekend – hurrah! The least we can do is celebrate with a quality cocktail. We’ve got a recipe for each day of the bumper Bank Holiday. And as we’re good British citizens and the juniper spirit is the Queen’s favourite tipple, each one is gin-based…
Saturday:
Jubilee Garden Party Punch
Celebrating the quintessential English country garden, this punch combines the best ingredients from the English countryside – perfect for such a marvellous British celebration.
Ingredients:
3 parts Beefeater London Dry Gin
3 parts sparkling English Wine
2 parts good quality pressed pear or apple juice
1 part fresh lemon juice
1 part elderflower cordial
½ part sugar syrup
Method:
Stir all ingredients with a large ice block* and serve. Garnish with pear and apple slices.
*For large ice block: Fill a clean, empty juice carton three quarters full with water and pop in the freezer. When frozen, carefully cut carton away from the ice.
Jubilee Garden Party PunchSunday:
Nick Strangeway’s Warranted Jubilee Punch
This is the most blue-blooded of cocktails, mixing Beefeater Gin with ingredients that hold a Royal Warrant or have Royal association. Either make it yourself, or if you can’t be faffed to get all the ingredients, try it at Mark Hix’s HIX restaurants throughout the summer.
Ingredients:
2 parts Beefeater London Dry Gin
1 part Dubonnet
1 part Hawkers Sloe Gin
½ part Grants Morella Cherry Liqueur
½ part Jo Hilditch British Cassis
½ part Jo Hilditch British Framboise
A splash of King’s Ginger Liqueur
3 dashes of Angostura Bitters
1 part lemon juice
4 parts chilled Twinings Earl Grey tea
4 parts Mumm champagne
Method:
Build the ingredients in a punch bowl or jug and top with ice. Garnish with fresh seasonal berries and currants, lemon wheels and borage flowers and serve in punch or tea cups.
Monday:
Dre Masso’s Royal Jamboree Punch
Dre’s Royal Jamboree Punch is a fruity twist on the traditional recipe, bursting with quintessentially English flavours.
Ingredients:
300ml Beefeater London Dry Gin
5 tablespoons strawberry jam
5 tablespoons lemon juice
100ml Dubonnet
300ml red grape juice
Lemonade
Method:
Pour all ingredients except lemonade into a punch bowl or jug and stir well, making sure the jam is mixed thoroughly. Add ice and garnish. Top with lemonade. Garnish with lemon wheels, fresh strawberries sliced in half and sliced red grapes. Serve in highball glasses.
Salvatore Calabrese’s My MartiniTuesday:
My Martini – a cocktail fit for the queen
Keep it simple and elegant with a Classic Martini. You can’t go wrong with this step-by-step method from The Maestro, Salvatore Calabrese – it’s strong but bloody good…
Ingredients
Good quality gin
2-3 dashes of Martini Extra Dry Vermouth
Twist of lemon / olive
Method:
1. Place a bottle of good quality gin in the freezer.
2. Coat inside of a cocktail glass with still water, discharge the excess and place in the freezer for 24 hours. Remove.
3. Pour the good quality gin directly into the glass. This will give the drink dilution.
4. Lay 2-3 dashes of Martini Extra Dry Vermouth on top for aroma and taste, this ensures the martini is super cold and super dry.
5. Add a twist of lemon on top (make sure that there is no pulp), extracting the oil straight from the lemon.
6. Coat lemon twist around the edge of the glass, and then place into glass for garnish, or an olive if preferred.
