Bank Holiday Bounty

Next weekend sees the start of another Bank Holiday break in England. Where better to spend it than in the sunshine (we can all hope) on the banks of the River Thames, at beauteous Hampton Court Palace.  Arrive by boat from Kingston or Richmond (it's a serenely scenic journey), take an extended walk along the towpath or just do the one minute hop from Hampton Court station (on SouthWest Trains, from Waterloo).

You can choose to visit the Palace (see the magnificent artworks and learn fascinating facts about the court of Henry VIII); otherwise simply enjoy the splendours of the magnificent gardens - with a picnic of your own making - or opt for a convenient pitstop at one of the cafés.

If you enjoy exploring new ingredients, or upgrading your cookery skills, and you're a fan of renowned chefs (including Gary Lee from The Ivy, Giancarlo Caldesi, Paul Merrett and Jun Tanaka), treat yourself to a ticket to the Foodies Festival.  When you book online, or call 0871 230 5571, and quote foodies 241, you'll get two tickets for the price of one.  See you there!

Pic shows the glorious golden gates outside Hampton Court Palace's beautiful Privy Gardens. © amethyst

Cocktails - at last!

If you're tempted to celebrate the season in a less traditional way, I can recommend recreating one (or both) of the wonderful Whitley Neill concoctions, from The Lobby Bar at One Aldwych.

Bar star, Roberto de Vivo, takes the inspiration for his Lost Cherry from fellow Italian, Alessandro Parllazzi, at Dukes Hotel.
To prepare this fragrant 'dirty' Martini, you'll need:
40ml of Whitley Neill
15ml Noilly Prat vermouth
10ml Rose liqueur
15ml Maraschino infused with fresh cherries

Pour all the ingredients into a shaker, shake enthusiastically; double strain. Garnish with a large maraschino cherry (which will sink appropriately to the bottom of the glass).

Roberto uses La Poutroie rose liqueur but it may not be so easy to track down (although Gerry's in Soho is worth searching). I've located a delicious-sounding example by Briottet, at £13.99. Although, I haven't tasted the Briottet exponent, personally, I'm sure it would be a brilliantly unusual adjunct to the cocktail enthusiast's repertoire and also fab poured over a good vanilla ice-cream...

Caroline Weise's deeply spicy Africa is richly warming and perfectly seasonal. You'll need:
1 star anis
15ml lime juice
50ml Whitley Neill Gin
25ml Amaretto
15ml sugar syrup
a cinnamon stick

Prepare by 'muddling' the star anis with the sugar syrup and lime juice; add the other ingredients. Shake and double strain. Garnish with a 'curl' of orange peel and a cinnamon stick.

If you can't find star anise in the herb & spice section of your local supermarket, you'll be able to buy it (loose, by weight) from your nearest branch of Neals Yard Remedies.

Cheers!

Out of Africa (aka Gin-novations)

What's your tipple of choice? If you rarely stray far from your familiar glass filler, there's a worthy cause that might nudge you into a detour, out of your comfort zone. The spirit of adventure took me, a couple of nights ago, when I went out to explore the new world of gin with a merry band of celebrated bloggers.

Whitley Neill is an award-winning boutique gin - voted drink brand of 2008 by UK Vogue. It's a spirit with a warm heart - authentic - but with a sun-infused difference. Influenced by his wife's African roots, creator Johnny Neill was inspired to add a touch of the exotic. The signature botanical is the fruit of the versatile Baobab tree. A percentage of each bottle sale is donated to Tree Aid (a charity born out of Live Aid, whose brilliantly practical purpose is to empower indigenous African people - young and old - to find happy long-term solutions to drought-induced crop depletion).

Last summer, Johnny pursued the theme, launching the Top of the Tree Cocktail Challenge. The competition encouraged creative bar professionals to produce the ultimate Whitley Neill concoction, encompassing at least one tree-based ingredient (with a donation made to Tree Aid for each example sold). So, we festive bloggers (Timinator, Tikichris, Foodstories, Chris, Lizzie, Niamh, Melanie, and I) merrily sipped and savoured our way through an élite selection, as we gin-cruised (relatively soberly) through four venues.

The Lobby Bar, at One Aldwych, prepared my two tree-topping stars of the night. Carolin Weise's Africa is perfectly seasonally apt, suffused with warm spicy flavours. Bar Manager, Roberto de Vivo's cheekily titled Lost Cherry is a female take on the Martini - ideal for injecting a sunny influence into long dark winter's nights - redolent with fragrant summer elements of cherry and rose. The recipes will follow shortly...

Bloggers drink-up aka smoothie update...

Luckily, I don't spend all my time seated at my desk - even writers have to get out-and-about, sometimes... The cocktail theme, that featured in Born in the Gardens was also significant, earlier in the week, when I was invited to Diageo's headquarters, in London's Henrietta Place.

Unsurprisingly, for eminent drinks producers, there was a truly stunning bar (for staff, or by invitation only). Expert mixologists were kept busy, creating variants on the renowned Moscow Mule, inspired by invited London bloggers individual preferences. Using the requisite triple-distilled Smirnoff Red vodka, ginger ale and lime - as a base - their creativity flowed, along with the cocktails...

My love for a berry smoothie didn't go unnoticed: an amethyst-tinged, alcohol-infused long drink appeared; the mule ingredients complemented by fresh 'muddled' blueberries, mint, coconut cream and cardomom syrup. Unusual, refreshing, quite delicious and many degrees more alcoholic than my usual fruity blend. Thank goodness for the inclusion of plenty of ice cubes...


Photo courtesy of Chris Osburn