Has anyone got some acceptable uses for St Germain? I've been given a bot...

Julian Bond - 2015-05-28 06:14:30+0000 - Updated: 2015-05-28 10:32:26+0000

Has anyone got some acceptable uses for St Germain? I've been given a bottle of Chase Elderflower liqueur which is a 20% Chase vodka and Elderflower concoction that's basically the same. The problem is that my tastes prefer the more bitter and dryer end of the spectrum and it's all a bit sweet for me. I did find this on Barnotes and in Chase's recommendations. It's really just a slightly sweeter G&T with some extra flavours but just the thing for a muggy evening that's an hour away from a downpour.

Gin & Germain
Today's Friday Night Cocktail is the Gin & Germain. Except that it's not St Germain. The Gin is Adnam's Copper House from our trip last week to the Suffolk coast. So without further ado,
50ml Adnams Copper House Gin
25ml Chase Elderflower
75ml Fevertree tonic
Over Ice, Collins glass, Lime garnish.

http://barnotes.co/recipes/gin-st-germaine

[note: this is a repost as a previous copy got deleted somehow.]

Art Thompson, Jr. - 2015-06-03 21:09:01+0000

I had a Passenger Cocktail this past weekend and was surprised to like it: (http://bit.ly/1M5GoAE). I say that because I'm not the biggest St. Germain fan since I feel it too easily dominates a cocktail. The Passenger was well-balanced and gave me new hope for that 3 year-old half-full bottle on my shelf.

Julian Bond - 2015-06-04 08:20:12+0000

Thanks for that. Looks like I've got the next Friday Night Cocktail, then. Cans of San Pellegrino Orange are fairly easy to find round here.

But Bombay Sapphire? Ugh! ;)

Art Thompson, Jr. - 2015-06-04 13:41:56+0000

Yeah, that's not my fav gin by a stretch. We used Churchill's (which could have easily been Gordon's), but it was fine. Any London style gin will work, IMO.

Pontus Rååd - 2015-06-05 17:04:10+0000

You could always try Phil Wards Elder Fashion http://www.kindredcocktails.com/cocktail/elder-fashion

Julian Bond - 2015-06-05 17:19:16+0000 - Updated: 2015-06-05 17:24:17+0000

Just made a Passenger. San Pellegrino Aranciata Rossa is good stuff that's obviously improved with a bit of Gin and the other ingredients!

One of my favourite non-alcoholic pub drinks is the St Clements [1]. A bottle each of Britvic Orange juice and Schweppes bitter lemon. The point being that these ingredients are virtually always available in a pub. This works well and tastes exactly the same if you add a double shot of Gin. The Passenger reminds me of this with just a little more refinement.

[1]From the East end of London nursery rhyme. Oranges and Lemons sing the bells of St Clements

Julian Bond - 2015-06-05 17:33:46+0000

I shouldn't be too rude about Bombay because it's made 5 miles from my Mum's house. And the coriander does work quite well. The main complaint though is that it's a bit tasteless.

Through my son, I know a few people in the London cocktail bar trade. They all swear by Beefeater for cocktails. A good honest, straight forward, balanced gin with enough flavour to work in cocktails without overpowering them. Plus, it's relatively cheap so improves the profit margins.

Julian Bond - 2015-06-13 17:48:13+0000

The French Gimlet worked pretty well. It's just another sour but the elderflower does add something.
40ml gin, 20ml St Germain, 10ml lime juice, shaken, martini glass, lime twist Of course, if you view the Gimlet as a quintessentially British Limey thing, a "French" Gimlet is bit off-point!

The Saint Negroni works but it really just adds more sweetness with the elderflower masked by all the other flavours. 25ml each of Gin, Red Vermouth, Campari, St Germain, Soda. Tumbler, Rocks, Orange twist.

I've scoured the St germain, and Chase websites and nothing really attracts the imagination. The one exception is the Elderfucker. Love the name, love the photo. http://barnotes.co/recipes/the-elderfucker

Art Thompson, Jr. - 2015-06-13 18:55:52+0000

Now this sounds promising. I never thought to try St. Germain with tequila. Might try it with a key lime variation soon.