There are drinks for all rhymes and reasons, all moods and feelings. One might associate spirits with cigars, leather chairs and musty tomes in the library, and for most part they couldn’t go wrong with that. There’s also the singular experience of gulping down vodka to the scent of stale smoke, sweat and disco lights (and there’s plenty that could go wrong with that).
The third course of enjoying drink in the garden, surrounded by the smells of earth, grass and flowers, is sadly unexplored. What a pity too! There’s nothing like enjoy a long sip of a cold drink and watching the world go by.
You can’t just drink anything in the garden, though. To fit the mood, it needs to be soothing and even somewhat floral, instead of rich and woody. Naturally, in the home of tea and biscuits, one can’t help but take inspiration from the beverage.
While not a true tea, Chamomile naturally leapt to mind. It’s got an unmistakable scent of sweet herbs and just a touch of honey in it. It’s light as air on the tongue , and you can almost feel the weight of the world melting away as you take a sip of it.
You might think that I’m joking here, but there is actual scientific basis to show that Chamomile is a relaxant par excellence. It rapidly drains tension from both mind and body, leaving one with an unmistakable feeling of zen-like calm. Perfect for someone looking to take things slow.
It’s also fortunate that Chamomile pairs fairly well with most spirits. It adds an ethereal dimension to the right gin or whisky, particularly so for those which are already floral to begin with. For this experiment, though, I stuck to neutral vodka to isolate the taste of chamomile and keep it at the front of the liqueur. I also like to use a bit of honey syrup instead of the usual sugar. The honey’s combination of floral scents and malty earthiness pairs quite well with the chamomile’s lightness and oddly enough, both complements and contrasts its floral tones.
- 50g Chamomile
- 700ml Vodka
- 300ml Honey Syrup (honey dissolved in equal part of water)
- Immerse the chamomile in the vodka
- Leave to infuse for 1 week, then add the honey syrup
- Leave to infuse for 1 week, then filter out chamomile and bottle
- You can use dried chamomile. Simply buy dried chamomile tea- and leave them in the teabags.
- I used a neutral Ketel One Vodka, but most Vodkas will do
With its sweetness already offset by a slightly bitter herbal tinge, the next step would be to add some sour flavours to bring into harmony. I also like a bit of extra texture in the drink, so I decided that an European-style sour, with egg white in the mix, would be the best way to drink the Chamomile liqueur.
The recipe I used is below, and is based on a tea sour.
- 1 1/2 oz. Chamomile liqueur
- 1 oz Fresh lemon juice
- 0.5 oz Egg white
- Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and give it a dry shake (without ice)
- Add the ice and shake till ice cold
- Double strain into a coupe glass and garnish with either a lemon peel or chamomile flowers
