Trini Carnival: Introducing the Spicebox Cocktail

Leave it to Dave (creative, precise, also dashing and witty) to not only create a new cocktail worthy of being the Spicebox Supperclub’s signature cocktail, but to make his own infused spirits! This cocktail had it all– mango (one of Trinidad’s best fruits), Indian spices, Trinidad’s Angostura bitters, and the use of the insider-hip ingredient, a shrub (drinking vinegar).  While each of these ingredients has a strong individual personality, Dave’s expert mixing melded them together beautifully and subtly, with the capstone being fresh curry leaves, which added both flavor and garnish.  This cocktail is a winner.

Spicebox Cocktail

1 oz Cardamom and ginger infused rum (see below)

1 oz mango juice

1/2 oz peach shrub

Juice from 1/2 lime

Splash of simple syrup

Dash angostura bitters

Garnish: curry leaf pressed into palm or folded to release aroma and turbanado sugar for rim.

Put all ingredients in cocktail shaker with ice and stir for 20 seconds (do no shake).

Sugar rim by running lime around rim and dipping glass into sugar.  Garnish with curry leaf.

Pour in chilled cocktail glass up, or over ice in rocks glass.

Cheers, Nalin!

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Cardamom and ginger infused rum (enough for party; can be scaled down)

3 cups silver/light rum

20 green cardamom pods cracked

20 1/8 inch slices of ginger

Combine in mason jar.  Swirl daily.  Week should do though no harm in letting it marry for longer.  Strain (I used a funnel with cheese cloth and pressed the ginger with wooden spoon handle, which gave the rum a slightly yellow and cloudy look but much stronger ginger flavor).

Linda, Peter and a pile of mangoes in Trinidad

Come back next week for (finally) some food!