It’s the day of the kings today, so it seems appropriate to post on a drink dedicated to one of them and their gift.
We dropped in to the W Bar in Verbier and decided to try the Gaspare Tribute, invented by Manuel. This was composed of Campari, lemon, smoked honey, egg white, and rosemary.
It was good, but it lacked gin!
So this is my version.
Recipe for a gin-campari fizz
For one person
Ingredients
- 45 ml/3 tbsps gin
- 22 ml/1½ tbsps. Campari
- 22 ml/1½ tbsps. fresh lemon juice (juice from about half a lemon)
- 1 tsp bitter honey
- 1 tsp water
- 1 egg white
- Dash of Dr Adam Elmirgirab’s Spanish bitters
- Sprig of rosemary
Method
- Warm the honey, water and lemon juice to dissolve the honey. cool in the freezer, together with whatever glass you’re using.
- Once cool, put all the other ingredients into a cocktail shaker, and then add the cooled lemon-syrup.
- Shake hard to combine. It’s important to mix the egg white in with the other ingredients before you cool and shake with the ice.
- Fill the shaker about three-quarters with ice.
- Shake like mad, for about 30 seconds, until a froth has formed. This is also an important step – your arms may, should, ache – it’s all part of mixing the egg white in and also building up an attractive froth.
- Strain into the cooled glass, and garnish with the rosemary.
What’s with a fizz? Why add egg white to a cocktail?
- It mellows sharp flavours – in this drink there are three – the lemon, the Campari, and the gin
- It helps to integrate the different flavours
- It gives a nice, silky texture
- It makes the drink more opaque, which can make very bright cocktails look a bit more elegant
- The froth makes the drink, well, a bit frothy! It gives an added bit of fun.
