When making bitters with… Bittered SLing
Contributed by on May 21, 2016
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This is not about bragging I swear, it’s just me being so happy I got the chance to be part of this ! Abouth 3 months ago I got an email asking me if I could take down time to participate to an immersion trip and educational program in France with… drum rolls : Grand Marnier and Bittered Sling. Of course yes ! It was a no brainer and I’m telling you, if you ever get a similar email, SAY YES !!!
Everything about this week in Paris and Cognac was perfect. I got the chance to meet and make friends with great bartenders from across Canada, visit the best cocktail bars of Paris, eat too much foie gras (believe me it’s possible), got a master class about Grand Marnier with the master blender himself and it goes on and on. One of the highlight of this adventure, and I say one because it was almost nothing but highlights, was the seminar about bitters we had with Lauren Mote and Jonathan Chovencek of Bittered sling.
Imagine yourself in a french castle from the 16th century, by a beautiful and sunny day of april. After an amazing lunch with local cheeses, wine and yes, more foie gras, we entered the main room of the castle that was transformed into a bucolic class room / laboratory filled with colorful procducts and botanical smells. Trust me when I say I never saw a more interested audience. It might have to do with the fact that these two are extremely talented orators but also because we all realized the chance we had to be given insights and tips by the owners and developers themselves, on how to improve our skills at making such an important cocktail ingredients that bitters are.
How cool is it that we had the chance to make our own batch of bitters with a bunch of friends in a french castle with masters to help ! We were provided with great botanicals, spices, fruits and… Marnier Cognac as our based spirit. For my part, I wanted to make a sweet and fruity bitters with a spicy bite. Apricots and guinea peppers are the signature of the concoction, along with the wormwood, angelica, liquorice, caraway, orange peels and earlgrey tea. After a month of maceration now, I really get the fruity and sweet taste. The peppery bite is subtle but pleasantly present. The smoothness and compelxity of the Cognac helps to get a very homogeneous mouth feel. I think another month is required for a complete flavor extraction but I can say already I will be amazed by the end result.
If you are curious about how would taste a Cognac based bitters but not ready to start experimenting, Bittered Sling has done it for you. They developed an exclusive recipe for the house of Marnier – Lapostolle called « Le Grand Sling ». Based on their Marnier Cognac and inspired by Levan/Middle Eastern. This turmeric, rose, apricot, coriander and saffron concoction is a beautiful one. It’s a limited edition and it was not meant for selling purposes but if you come and see me at the Château Frontenac for a drink, I always have a bottle with me (until I finish my stock of course) and I’ll be pleased to make you a little something or should I say a « Grand » something with it !
But if you want to jump and experiment on your own, here’s some very helpful tricks I learned during this afternoon.
"In building your recipe, you have to keep in mind that there are families of ingredients and each of them are usually better to use in a specific ratio. For 400 ml of spirit they recommend 5g of Bitter ingredients, 10g of spices, 15g of sweet spices, 20g of dried fruits and 25g of citrus. Then of course you can built your own ratio depending on what result you are looking for but it’s a good way to start.
Second key tip is the maceration. In a non reactive container, let steep for at least four weeks in a dark and cool place and agitate the jar daily. Do not hesitate to open it from time to time to taste and see when you achieved the result you wanted. Depending on the amount of ingredients of each families you put in, it can take shorter or longer to achieve your goal. When asking yourself if the bitters is ready, there is three questions you have to ask yourself : Is the brew strong enough ? Can I taste all the ingredients I put in ? And does it taste like one complexe flavour ? If you answer yes to all three questions, it’s time to strain your concoction and enjoy !" -by Lauren/Jonathan
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