“French Kiss” by Alessio Giovannesi, Bar Manager of Baccano in Rome
Do you need some drinkspiration? Join me on a sip to the Eternal City. I am back with a new cocktail by Alessio Giovannesi. He is the bar manager of Ristorante Baccano in Rome, ranked number 70 in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2019. You will find Baccano just steps away from the Trevi Fountain. Baccano is a Mediterranean bistrot concept orchestrating food and drinks in a sophisticated way. Delicious plates and elegant cocktails are a harmonious mixture.
French Kiss is the brand new champagne cocktail by Alessio Giovannesi. The drink, perfect for an aperitif, features in the new cocktail menu of Giovannesi and is based on English Single Estate Ramsbury Gin, with an aftertaste of red fruits. French Kiss is a twist, a revision of classic French cocktail Kir Royal. In Giovannesi’s version, the crème de cassis is replaced by a homemade shrub of vanilla and raspberry.
To prepare French Kiss, pour 50 ml of Ramsbury Gin and 50 ml of a shrub of vanilla and raspberry in a mixing glass, mix and cool with ice for 10 seconds. Pour in a flûte glass or a frozen double coupette, after rimming the glass with sugar, then top with champagne brut. Ramsbury Gin is the main element in this twist, whose main ingredients are grown in England, in the Ramsbury estates that dominate the Wiltshire hills, between London and Cardiff. The clear and unspoiled Kennet River gives the water that is used in the distillery and for the breeding of farm animals. To the process that creates pure alcohol from the precious Horatio wheat variety, there are other production phases with 9 botanical components: juniper, quince, coriander, angelica, iris root, liquorice, lemon, orange and cinnamon. These are distilled together with traditional copper gin still. At the tasting of this gin, distributed in Italy by Rinaldi1957, the juniper delicately infuses itself with the herbaceous and fruity scents of quince for a balanced and complex aroma.
Sounds tempting? Here comes the recipe. Salute!
50 ml Ramsbury Gin
50 ml shrub of vanilla and raspberry
Top Champagne Brut
Glass: flûte or double coupette
Garnish: rim of sugar
Preparation:
Pour the Ramsbury Gin and the shrub in a mixing glass, mix and cool with ice for 10 seconds. Pour in a flûte glass or a frozen double coupette after rimming the glass with sugar, then fill with champagne brut.
