Some ingredients
Earlier this week I met up with mixologist Jenn to discuss the Art in the Age / Brat Productions Poe Cocktail contest. Jenn is very pleased with the ROOT product, and has been experimenting since the spirit’s inception with her own concoctions. We’ve sipped and surmised on several occasions before. The general conciseness is that because there’s so many flavor compounds in root, any cocktail made from it needs to pick a few of those flavors to play up. At the cocktail competition, it appeared as though many of the bartenders/trixes were doing the opposite – adding even more flavors to the party.
Jenn is also a fan of,  shall we say, strong drinks. It was her personal goal to make a cocktail with ROOT as the star, with very little watering-down mixers. She whipped up 6 (?) different sample cocktails before I had to go to work, all incorporating ROOT. Some were coffee and cream based, one played to the vanilla notes, another to the citrus and licorice. Ginger, lemon, and cinnamon were experimented with.
"The Sleeper"
Jenn also infuses her own spirits, so she was able to craft beverages that the judges would not be able to duplicate. These included a blueberry-ginger infusion that was interesting, and although delicious, we decided to stick with ingredients available at the local liquor store.
So what is my choice for the cocktail she should submit? Ah, if I told you you might steal the concept. These are very serious things, cocktail competitions. I will say that this is a picture of it at right, and I propose Jenn call it “The Sleeper” after the Poe poem of the same name, particularly from this line “An opiate vapor, dewy, dim, / Exhales from out her golden rim”
There’s still time to enter. Submit your POE inspired ROOT cocktail by October 1st to nam@artintheage.com. The winning cocktail will be featured at Poe‚Äôs Ghosts, a program hosted by Art in the Age featuring Brat Productions. October 13, 2009 from 6pm-8pm
Happy mixing.