After Problogger last weekend I was lucky enough to be a guest of Tourism & Events Queensland for the day, and was sent on some seriously fun adventures. The one I want to tell you about today was the VIP Bar School at Fix bar, which is the cocktail bar at the Hilton Surfers Paradise. I will get to the others soon!
We were met at Fix Bar by Sam the Bartender, a cute, baby faced young man with a huge passion and a wealth of knowledge about all things cocktail. The first two cocktails he shared with us where his own invention, a male and female version of LOVE STRUCK COCKTAIL. The cocktail is served in separate components that the lucky recipient gets to mix themselves, and can I just say this was a hoot! It was a bit like being a mad scientist!
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| Sam the barman supervising the scientists at work. |
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| See how excited I was by dry ice? So much fun. |
I need to mention that dry ice is very bad for you while it is in solid form. Once it has dissolved into smoke the cocktail is safe to drink, but don't drink it until the smoke has cleared. Besides being a fun experience, the advantage of using dry ice is that it will chill your dink very fast without diluting it, unlike regular water based ice. Please go and read this paragraph again, just to make sure. Don't put dry ice in your mouth!
The smoked whiskey used in the male version is Johnny Walker Black that Sam creates himself using apple wood chips in a specialty smoker, which looks a bit like a glue gun. Note - Do not try this with a glue gun.
The next cocktail is called English Summer Garden, and it is an amazing sensory experience. Here is the recipe, but I won't be trying this at home.
English Summer Garden Cocktail
- 3 slices of cucumber muddled with 15mls of Elder-flower Cordial
- Shake with 50mls of Tanqueray Gin, 30mls of apple juice, 30mls of alcoholic apple cider, and ice.
- double strain into a chilled glass.
- garnish with a slice of cucumber and a union jack.
To Serve
- place astro turf on a tray, place cocktail on one end.
- place absinthe strawberry jelly worms on the other end, cover with rum infused edible soil (rum chocolate brownie that has been dehydrated and crumbled)
- place some edible soil in a miniature terracotta pot, top with a fresh mint sprig.
- fill a miniature watering can with some dry ice, and a few drops of cut grass essence.
- Serve immediately, so that the smoke from the dry ice will surround the drinker with essence of cut grass.
Talk about performance art!
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| For a coffee lover like me, this was divine. |
Fix Espresso
- 45mls vodka
- 15mls agave/water mix
- 10mls of Jans Liqueur
- 10mls Kahlua
- 30mls espresso
- Shake well, strain into a rocks glass.
- Top with Espresso Foam (50% espresso, 50% sugar, and gelatin charged in a bulb canister)
- Dust with chocolate powder and serve with a small chunk of chocolate.
We also learnt to make the following classic cocktails....
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| The trick is to not go overboard with the cranberry juice, you just want enough to make it pink. |
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| This can also be made with Lychee/Ginger or Vanilla/Passion fruit! |
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| SO simple and yet...so easy to ruin, I suspect. The perfect temperature for this is -7 degrees, which is best checked using a laser thermometer. |
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| Add 15mls of my old friend tequila for a traditional Long Island iced tea. |
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| We didn't make this but gee, was I happy to taste it! |
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Finally tasting Absinthe was one of the highlights of my day. Can you believe that for someone who actually believes they lived in New Orleans in a former life I had never tasted Absinthe before? Well, not in this lifetime. I know, right?
It's a bit like drinking petrol, but I can certainly see the attraction.
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This was the big finale, and another invention of Sam the Bartender. He's really done his research into the whole prohibition era and came up with a cocktail that delights in secretive deliciousness.
Speakeasy Iced tea
- Shake 20mls of Citrus vodka, apple juice, 5ml of sugar syrup and 20mls of absinthe over ice, strain into an antique poison bottle. Hide poison bottle inside a hollowed out antique book.
- Make a double batch of Long Island Iced Tea, and pour into an antique teapot that contains dry ice.
- To serve, fill 2 teacups with ice and place with saucers on a tray. Place lemon slices on saucers.
- Place tea pot and book on the tray.
- Serve. Sip smugly.
Nothing to see Officer, I'm just enjoying a nice cup of tea while I read a book.
What's in the poison bottle? Medicine of course!
For my gout.
Thank you Sam, thank you Hilton Surfers Paradise, and thank you Tourism and Events Queensland for an amazing experience. I wasn't obligated to blog but I can't stop babbling about it...
VIP BAR SCHOOL is $95 per person
6 Orchid Ave, Surfers Paradise, Australia.
xx