gin cocktails – Fifty Pounds Gin. https://fiftypoundsgin.london A strikingly SMOOTH SMALL BATCH distilled classic London Dry Gin Wed, 16 Sep 2020 14:03:00 +0000 es hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.5.3 The Mixed History of the Negroni https://fiftypoundsgin.london/blog/the-mixed-history-of-the-negroni/ https://fiftypoundsgin.london/blog/the-mixed-history-of-the-negroni/#respond Wed, 16 Sep 2020 14:03:00 +0000 https://fiftypoundsgin.london/?p=60575

The Negroni: a classic cocktail with a very varied history

Nowadays the Negroni is as ubiquitous as Love Island stars in the Mail Online sidebar, but – like all the best legends – it’s origins are heavily disputed, with champions on both sides of the historical fence. To celebrate Negroni Week 2020 we’re going to take a look at how this now classic cocktail came into being.

 

Geography

 

Negroni is a popular family name in Northern Italy and it’s generally accepted that the cocktail is derived from the Americano, which was in turn based on the Milano-Torino, which takes its name from the hometowns of the two main ingredients: equal part Campari (Milan) and Amaro Costa (Turin).

 

The Milano-Torino is said to have been invented in Caffe Costa by Gaspare Campari. The area was popular with Americans who, not used to such strong drinks, would ask for their cocktail to be watered down with a splash of soda, thus giving birth to the Americano.

 

The Cocktail-Crazy Count

 

The story runs that Count Camillo Negroni, a notorious bon vivant, sometime cowboy, gambler and lover of all things boozy, asked for an extra kick to be added to his Americano. The bartender switched soda for gin and this subsequently became the Count’s regular order. It soon gained a reputation and more and more customers began to request a ‘Count Negroni’ and the cocktail we know today was born.

 

The French Lieutenant

 

While this is a romantic notion it’s been disputed that a Count Camillo has ever existed within the Negroni family genealogy. Instead, historians argue that Pascal Oliver Comte de Negroni was the true inventor, and was in fact, a Frenchman who fought in the Franco-Prussian wars. During a particularly decadent soiree, he introduced his friends at the Officers Club to his favourite cocktail, which contained vermouth, a drink now believed to be the source of the Negroni cocktail.

 

Historical Evidence

 

Some of the earliest mentions are in two guides printed in 1955. The UKBG Guide to Drinks, and Oscar Haimo’s Wine Digest, published in the UK and US respectively. Andrew Willet also found a reference to the Negroni in Horace Sutton’s Footloose in Italy, which mentions the Negroni as a popular Italian export native to the country.

 

We also have the famous quote from Orson Welles, who said upon trying his first (alleged) Negroni in 1947: ‘The bitters are excellent for the liver, the gin is good for you. They balance each other out!’. There are also references to James Bond enjoying a Negroni or two when a Martini wasn’t available.

 

Does It Matter?

 

However it arrived in our glasses, the Negroni is loved for good reason. It’s a true all-rounder, which can be enjoyed ice cold in summer, and will just as easily warm you on those chilly winter nights. Its ubiquity is testament so its smoothness, balance and bittersweet flavours, making it a perennial crowd-pleaser.

 

And with such an elegant little cocktail, what better gin to serve with than a cool, clean shot of Fifty Pounds? It’s a marriage made in heaven.

 

Find our recipe here: https://fiftypoundsgin.london/cocktail/negroni/

A Fifty Pounds Negroni

]]> https://fiftypoundsgin.london/blog/the-mixed-history-of-the-negroni/feed/ 0 Gin, charcoal and some unusual marinades …. https://fiftypoundsgin.london/blog/gin-charcoal-unusual-marinades/ https://fiftypoundsgin.london/blog/gin-charcoal-unusual-marinades/#respond Sat, 17 Nov 2018 11:26:43 +0000 https://fiftypoundsgin.london/?p=59571 The arrival of summer used to mean the smell of burned sausages and charcoal burgers emanating from many a garden across the UK.  Happily, we’ve massively improved on our outdoor cooking skills, around the time that gin has grown again in popularity.   We’re not saying there’s a direct correlation but you never know.

One thing we can say for sure, is just how big a part gin can play in your BBQ, from refreshing drink options to a more direct role…

BBQ Gin marinade Fifty pounds gin photo Jon Tyson
BBQ Gin marinade photo by Jon Tyson

Fifty Pounds flavour profile – juniper, citrus, spice – lends itself surprisingly well to BBQ marinades. 

For lamb or beef, we’d suggest pushing that peppery note. Start with four parts Fifty Pounds Gin to one part extra virgin olive oil. Mix, and toss with one thinly sliced, medium white onion, two cloves of garlic – finely chopped – a handful of chopped parsley and a teaspoon of black peppercorns. Apply over beef or lamb, and leave for at least three hours, ideally overnight. 

Juniper Citrus BBQ sauce

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. When life gives you a lot of spent botanicals…

The one by-product of gin production is, typically, some 30-40lbs of used botanicals per batch of gin. Rather brilliantly, these don’t go to waste and, instead, are proving very popular among the chef community.

While some are going quite elaborate with their recycling, if you have access to, say, some of the botanicals used in Fifty Pounds Gin, there are more straightforward approaches too.

Put 250mls of ketchup, 100mls of orange juice, 1 tbsp molasses, 100mls of cider vinegar into a saucepan, with 3tbsp juniper, I tablespoon each of coriander seeds, orange and lemon peel, and Grains of Paradise. Cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes and simmer. If it thickens too much, add a splash more orange juice or, indeed, gin.

Classic cocktails also make an interesting starting off point for marinades and sauces – the Red Snapper (a gin-based Bloody Mary) being a fine example.  

Double the basic quantities – 120 ml Fifty Pounds Gin, 480 ml tomato juice, 30 ml freshly squeezed lemon juice – and add to a saucepan, with 100g of dark brown sugar. Stir, bring to a slow simmer and reduce by around a third (for a marinade) or half (for a sauce). Add Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, celery salt and black pepper to taste.  It makes an excellent marinade for ribs, or chicken.  As a sauce, it can either be slathered on during the cooking process or added at the end. 

 

The Gimlet too can be adapted for BBQing purposes – this marinade is excellent with fish and chicken. Take 100mls of Fifty Pounds, the zest and juice of two limes, one clove of garlic minced, one teaspoon of paprika, two tablespoons of honey, salt and pepper to taste. Combine, whisk, and marinade. 

Gin, of course, can be used to make a myriad cooling, refreshing drinks.  If you’re spicing up your cooking, something sweet can help balance the heat, such as the Bee’s Knees. 

60ml of Fifty Pounds
1/2tsp of honey – the runnier the better
15ml fresh lemon juice
A splash of water or tonic

Stir the honey into the water/tonic to make a quick syrup. Add to a shaker with the gin, lemon juice and some ice. Shake, strain into a cold cocktail glass.

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