Drink This Now: Summer Pimm’s Cup and Rajasthani Royale at Bluestem
This week’s Drink This Now is a twofer: After chatting with Andrew Olsen last week about his new position as the bar manager at Bluestem, I knew I needed to go sample one of the Pimm’s Cups he mentioned. (Well worth it. More on that after the jump.)
But Olsen, back behind the bar after a four-month dry spell as the assistant manager at Cleaver & Cork — work that took him “away from his craft,” as he put its — Olsen was eager to experiment, and having just one of his cocktails seemed like gross negligence on my part.
First, that Pimm’s Cup. Olsen has plans, he says, to launch a build-your-own Pimm’s Cup bar during Bluestem’s Sunday brunch over the next month or so, featuring a bevy of fresh garnishes and sodas from Little Freshie, as well as a few that Olsen will make himself.
When I visited on Sunday, Olsen had no elaborate station, so he made a Pimm’s Cup of his own recipe — which, honestly, was a far safer bet than anything I could have devised on my own. Unlike a traditional Pimm’s Cup, there was no muddled cucumber in Olsen’s version. He combined Pimm’s, lemon juice and simple syrup, shook them together, then strained over ice into a glass. He garnished with a pretty fan of sliced strawberry.
The recipe might have been straightforward, but the flavor was not. Olsen’s version of a Pimm’s Cup allows the spirit’s profile to really shine, and I got big notes of black tea, tarragon and thyme, with a healthy pulse of citrus. It was all I could do to scribble those notes before the the drink disappeared.
Olsen was quick to replace my empty glass with a startlingly pretty cocktail. In a Collins glass over what he later revealed was Sonic ice, Olsen presented a drink that so closely resembled liquid gold, it practically glittered.
“For this, I did a rapid-infused turmeric Plymouth Gin,” Olsen told me. (He had batched the gin on Saturday.) “I put the [turmeric] root in the gin and charged it twice with nitrous oxide, let it sit for 10 minutes, released the pressure and strained it out. I also used an Art in the Age rhubarb liqueur. I’ve done this drink a bunch of different ways — every day, it changes.”
Looks aren’t everything, of course, so I was pleased when Olsen’s second cocktail tasted every bit as delicious as it was attractive. The turmeric brought a bright, ginger-like spice to the drink, but the effect wasn’t overly herbaceous. Instead, the rhubarb liqueur added a tartness cut with some helpful sweetness. This was a drink I knew I’d want again. I asked Olsen how to order it again.
“I don’t have a name yet,” he said. “There were some people in here yesterday from India, and turmeric is very popular in India. They said it tastes very much like this area in India called Rajasthan. And, oddly enough, the Rajasthani cricket team — they’re the Royals, and their colors are blue and gold. Pretty awesome. So I was thinking Rajasthani Royale, but I don’t want it to be uncomfortable for people to say, so I don’t know.”
Hard to pronounce, maybe, but very easy to drink. Rajasthani Royale it is.
SUMMER PIMM’S CUP
1-1/2 ounces Pimm’s
3/4 ounce lemon juice
3/4 ounce simple syrup
Shake, strain over ice, garnish with your choice of fruit medley.
RAJASTHANI ROYALE
3/4 ounce turmeric-infused Plymouth Gin
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce lemon juice
3/4 ounce Art in the Age rhubarb liqueur
2 dashes orange bitters
Shake, strain over ice, garnish with sprig of lavender.
See also:
Andrew Olsen takes over the bar program at Bluestem
Drink This Now: Maibowle at Affäre
Drink This Now: The Pirate’s Booty at Local Pig – Westport
Drink This Now: Blood Orange Ginger Fizz at Thou Mayest
Drink This Now: Melon Margarita at 715 Restaurant
Drink This Now: Fatboy Sling at the Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange
Drink This Now: 400 Rabbits of Drunkenness at Extra Virgin
