For the first time in India, Rick's Bar has come up with vinegar cocktails. Its manager Varun Sharma told Iknoor Kaur that the idea originated in New York but has been reworked to suit the Indian palate
Would James Bond have ever thought that his vesper martini could do better with a dash of vinegar or did it ever occur to bartenders that the world’s most complex cocktail, bloody mary, could be simplified with a mix of wine and tomato flavoured acetic acidIJ We don’t think so. Any barman who goes by the book would detest the idea. However, if you happen to drop by at Rick’s Bar, Taj Mahal Hotel, anytime soon, this idea will turn into a preference in no time. Having reinvented the 18th century shrubs, Rick’s has brought the ancient style of using vinegar in traditional cocktails to the fore. What can easily be called the first in its league, these cocktails have managed to set the market on fire. “Earlier lime was used as the souring agent in cocktails, but now we are using vinegar. We create vinegar with fruits. We first convert it into alcohol (wine) and then let it oxidise in order to become sour like vinegar. When we first tried this, it was like the perfect magic trick,” said restaurant manager, Pankaj Balachandran.
According to him, this is the first time that the vinegar used is being homemade. He shared, “A lot of people have used shrubs in their drinks or have even tried using cooking vinegar. But none of them have the flavour that homemade fruit vinegar has.”
The entire concept of the cocktails came from their head bartender, Varun Sharma. “It would be wrong to take the entire credit for this. The concept initially came from a bar in New York where they served vinegar cocktails. However, I reworked the idea and decided to add my choice of flavours. To have those flavours we had to make the wine and vinegar at home. So the kinds of vinegar we make are tea, apple, tomato, orange and wine,” he explained.
Traditionally, cocktails tend to have large ounces of liquor and Varun likes the idea of keeping the drink “traditionally new”. Thus, the first thing he offered us when we got to the bar was a vinegar shot. “This is to set the base on the palate for the rest of the drinks. Since, the alcohol content in the cocktails is high, it is good to prepare our customers with what’s coming,” he justified.
The first drink on the menu was the Vinegar Old Fashioned. As the name suggests the drink was a classic bourbon whiskey presented in a contemporary style. Varun prepared the drink in front of us and started with placing a sugar cube in an old fashioned glass. He then poured a little of wine vinegar, following which he sprayed rosemary bitters. Then he added a dash of a mixture that he explained to us was a “mix of all the Indian spices”. The whiskey was then poured over the concentrate and stirred to perfection. The interesting part in this cocktail was the cinnamon and sweet lime flavoured ice cube. “We do five to six flavours of ice and put them in drinks based on the aroma of the drink. When the ice melts the flavours come out gradually and blend in with the cocktail making the essence of the ingredients last,” said Varun.
The next drink on our list was the Bloody el tomate Mary — “a traditional bloody mary where instead of the Worcestershire sauce there is tomato vinegar and instead of lime juice there’s wine vinegar,” Pankaj elaborated. This particular cocktail is a barman’s delight. For all who have hated the sourness, spiciness or tanginess of this drink, they will never want to let go off this tall glass of bliss. According to Pankaj, women seem to be liking this drink more than the boys. “Bloody mary is known as one of the most complex drinks ever. Thus to get it right in the first place is the biggest challenge. However, with the response we have got so far, women are more attracted to this drink than men. Men like to go with the Vinegar Old Fashioned,” he said.
The Vinegar Martini was our closing drink and quite a hard-hitter too. For those who have a palate for the bitterness in the drink, it is a winner. “A classic martini is traditionally very bitter. However because of our vinegar this cocktail is slightly sweeter than that. But people need to have a palate for this drink. That is why it is popular with foreigners,” Varun informed.
Initially this menu was launched with the intention of running it till stock lasts. However, Pankaj said that with the kind of response they have received they may take the menu forward and turn it into a permanent one. Apart from this, he is now planning to start a new cocktail menu based on the concept of edible alcohol.