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I enjoy paring cocktails with food, especially if creating a new drink. We were serving salmon and asparagus the other day. Since asparagus does not pare with any wine, this seemed the perfect opportunity for a cocktail! Cue the Flavor Bible. (If you cook, and or make cocktails, you need this book!) I simply looked up salmon and asparagus comparing them for complementary flavors in common. I chose thyme, lemon and carrots. Yes, carrots.

Fish in general tastes best with a light, dry beverage. Heavy or sweet can hide some of the subtle flavors inherent to fish. In this case, I chose a gin martini. You could substitute vodka for the gin, but you will lose the herbal notes that work so well. I selected Ki No Bi gin for its flavors of kumquat, orange oil, juniper, spice and a slight bitterness of wormwood. I used Reisetbauer Carrot Eau de Vie that has an intense bright taste of carrots. Lemon peel expressed over the drink and fresh thyme as a garnish completed the complementary flavors.

The Mad Hatter Martini

As noted above, I used Ki No Bi gin. Your favorite gin will work quite nicely in the cocktail. I would avoid the highly herbal gins as they might overpower the subtle carrot. If you find this too bitter for your taste, decrease the amount of vermouth or make it a perfect with 1/2 bianco vermouth.

The nose is thyme, lemon and citrus. First flavors are clean, herbal, with a touch of spice. Then you note subtle carrots and juniper. The finish is long and dry.

  • 1 1/2 oz Gin
  • 1/2 oz Premium dry vermouth (or 1/4 oz dry & 1/4 oz. bianco vermouth)
  • 1/4 oz. Reisetbauer Carrot Eau de Vie
  • 2-3 drops Bitter Truth Olive Bitters 3034c13ba4303fb47a6a8f32c9cd16ece8bf196f.jpg
  • Lemon peel for expressing
  • Fresh thyme for garnish
  • Dried lemon wheel for garnish (optional)
  1. Chill a cocktail glass with ice and water
  2. Combine the gin, vermouth, eau de vie and bitters in a mixing glass with ice and stir to chill
  3. Double strain into the chilled cocktail glass
  4. Express the lemon peel over the drink and discard
  5. Spank the thyme and float it on the dried lemon peel

Cheers!