JUST JULIA TRIES: New cocktail menu at Orchid: Review (Aberdeen)

One of Aberdeen's leading cocktail bars has officially launched a new menu - and this time, the new menu's concept once again plays homage to Professor Jerry Thomas' "fancy drinks" categories.

Orchid Aberdeen officially launched their new menu just under two weeks ago which saw 13 new drinks take to the menu, with the addition of the infamous Pink Orchid which has been on the menu since Orchid opened in 2007.

Arriving on Thursday night, I'd brought one of my best friend's along to try out a couple of the new drinks. Although, little did I know we'd end up trying out over half of the menu!

Greeted by the wonderful Nick Gordon who is an award-winning bartender and the General Manager of the bar, he showed us to our seats and presented us with cucumber infused water.

Scaling the menu, Nick talked us through the concept behind it and offered us an AJ's Knockout cocktail as we decided on which drink to try out after.

AJ's Knockout was phenomenal, and quite possibly one of my favourites of the night. The Havana Especial based drink was made with clarified milk, pineapple, raspberry and strawberry, and was extremely sweet and light. It was so easy to drink and was a drink you could sip all day throughout the summer months. I think it may be my new take on Aperol Spritz.

Next up we decided to dive into something a little more fruity. Rachel went for Smoke But No Cigar - a tropical tiki style drink made with Monkey Shoulder, Pere Magloire, Martell VS, mango cordial, and lapsang syrup. Although fruity, the drink was also rather smokey too and made for a refreshing long drink.

I opted for the Woodstock Revival. Served in a highball, the El Jimador tequila created with Lustau White Vermouth, St Germain elderflower liqueur, lemon and Patchouli tincture is a long, herbal cocktail. Not only is it nice and light, it's not too alcohol-heavy and again, is another great cocktail for summer.

Both gin lovers, we'd simultaneously looked at the Grannie's Smith cocktail. But the good friend I am, I decided it was only fair Rachel got the honours of trying it out. Instead, I decided to order the D.I.Y Bru. A spritz cocktail, this was also a gin based drink featuring Aberdeen's first gin in over 100 years, Porter's Gin. The drink also boasted Amaro, Monrenegro, citric acid, prosecco and Dr Adam Elmegirab's Bitters & Botanical Spirits Spanish Bitters. The short, alcoholic Irn Bru was scrumptious and tasted as good as it sounds.

Grannie's Smith was created with Porter's Gin, Briottet Apple liqueur, guava cordial, lemon juice, Dr Adam Elmegirab's Bitters & Botanical Spirits Spanish Bitters and egg white. The fruity and sweet cocktail was ideal for Rachel's sweet palette and came garnished with a pansy.

Next up I decided to try out the American Pharaoh and Rachel tried the Maya & Elena. My American Pharaoh was a julep style with Martell VS, Briottet Peach liqueur, malic acid, peach and pink peppercorn syrup, and garnished with mint. The fresh drink was nice on the nose, and the cocktail itself was extremely crisp and light.

Rachel's Maya & Elena was a milanese style drinks. With Four Roses Bourbon, Amaro, Montenegro, thyme cordial, orange shrub and lemon, the drinks was more tart and bitter than my fresh, fruity cocktail. Herbaceous and with a shed load of citrus, it was beautifully refreshing.

Working the following day, we decided to call it a night after one last drink.

Sherry Shoes for me, and PB & P for Rachel. The Sherry Shoes cocktail was very delicious and not what I had expected. I've not ever really liked sherry, however the fino sherry cocktail was extremely refreshing and the strong taste of fresh kiwi was what sold this drink for me. Not only did it have fresh kiwi and sherry in it, it also boasted lemon, and kiwi syrup too.

Rachel's PB & P was a twist on a classic Bellini. The sparking cocktail boasted a pineapple and blackberry cordial topped with prosecco. The fizzy, fruity drink was the perfect way to round off our night and was rather fitting for the celebratory occasion.

We were also treated to a cheese and meats board which featured a number of local cheeses from Devenick Dairy. The creamy cheeses went well with the flavoured bread and oatcakes, and the chutney and meats also complimented many of the cocktails with their pungent flavours. There was a nice variety of salty, spicy, and sweeter cured meats which made for the perfect snack.

Heading home for the night, I would say we'd manged to get a real insight into the talent behind the bar in Orchid. It's clear from their diverse menu that this is one impressive team who know their stuff when it comes to creating innovative, creative, yet simplistic cocktails. With drinks trends continuously changing the team stay in the know and bring unique, handcrafted drinks to the people of Aberdeen year in year out.

  For Now...

Just Julia

Orchid Aberdeen: Winter menu preview

It doesn't take a lot for me to agree to go for cocktails. Ask my friends, it really doesn't. So when I was invited along to Orchid Aberdeen's winter menu preview there was no chance I was missing out...

Heading down to the bar one chilly Thursday evening, we were greeted by the bar team, and bar manager, Nick Gordon, and welcomed into the cosy, modern bar with open arms. An avid customer of the bar, and almost boredering regular status, I immediately felt at home.

Split into three different stations, the event was goign to showcase the new menu, cocktail mixology and gin tasting. Naturally, and on cue we all formed into smaller groups and headed to our first stations. Gin tasting it was.

Brand Ambassador of Porter's Gin, Sean Moggach, talked us through the history of gin, explaining the journey of gin since the 19th century, and chatted about how the team at Porter's ended up where they are today. After two years of trial and error and a solid gin recipe featuring 12 botanicals under their belt, the trio behind the Scottish gin created what Porter's is today, a delicious, zesty London Dry gin.

With a distinct understanding and appreciate of time and taste, the team behind Porter's managed to create what they see as the ideal London Dry style of gin which can be used in any drink - liquid gold to any bartender. By using exotic fruits like Buddha's hand and pink peppercorns, Porter's offers the market something very different. Sean also told us the stories (and fables) of Old Tom and commented on the popularity, and the accessibility gin boasts.

Sampling Porter's Gin, and the type of gin people used to drink back in the 19th century, its safe to say gin has come a long way in appealing to the palette.

Moving on to the second station we were invited to have a wee chin-wig with Nick, chatting all things cocktails and the concept behind the new menu launching this month.

After an inspiring visit to New Orleans, and learning about concepts carried out in the US, Nick was keen to put his new found knowledge into practice. He wanted to remove the stigma that seems to be the opinion of many that there is nothing to do in Aberdeen.

With a menu consisting of eight different spirits and drinks, the concept is simple...order a drink which is associated with an Aberdeen landmark, visit that place, take a selfie, post the photo on social media, return to the bar to collect your special badge and repeat again for the seven other drinks/locations. Once you've collected all the badges (and all the selfies), return to the bar and you will receive the honour of having your name printed on the next cocktail menu - pretty cool huh!? Not only is there the chance to have your name printed on a cocktail menu, you're also visiting a number of the cities landmarks and expriencing places you may have never been before.

The locations include;

•  Porter's Lock-in. You guessed it, it features Porter's gin. (Religious Robbery)
• 13 King Street. This drink has whisky in it due to the location being the old headquarters for whisky giants Chivas Regal back in the day.
• Fittie.  Due to its connections with the sea, Fittie is the perfect place to associate this drink which features rum with...(Honey Rider)
• Aberdeen Beach. A cocktail with a twist on a daiquiri - white rum features.
• Duthie Park. The Beerlini - perfect on a summers day...
• Music Hall. £1 from every cocktail made in association with this cocktail is donated to Meningitis UK
• Secret Location. Grab the infamous Pink Orchid right there in the bar. They couldn't make it any more obvious if they tried...
• A local bartender who cannot be named for the purposes of fun and mischievous games, is also on the list of selfies to gain - I cannot wait for this person to find out who they are, and I'm delighted I guessed it right! My lips are sealed for now though...

The bar will also offer six bottled cocktails that are non-perishable on its new menu. These cocktails will also be available for delivery straight to your door through food delivery company, Deliveroo.

Beerlini

 Grapefruit cordial, salted Campari and topped with lager - a twist on a traditional bellini, but with beer instead of prosecco

Religious Robbery

Porter's Gin, a spiced pineapple syrup, coconut juice and a dash of Dr Adam Elmegirab's Teapot Bitters.

Honey Rider 

Mango infused rum, grapefruit oleo saccharum and Dr Adam Elmegirab's Orinoco Bitters. 

Fun fact: This is an Old Fashioned style drink which was named after the first ever Bond girl.

Last but not least, we were treated to a mini cocktail masterclass with Matt. To begin with, he fixed us up a refreshing daiquiri and talked us through the history behind the infamous drink and sours. Educating us on sours and how they are the most accessible drink, we learned about the first bartender to write things down, Jerry Thomas, and how he began creating drinks lists - now drinks menus. We then learned about Jennings Cox who established the daiquiri which was very interesting too.

Next, he put our cocktails skills to the test, getting us to make our very own Pink Orchid. A signature drink of the bar, and the only drink to have managed to secure a spot on every menu since the bar launched in 2009, the Pink Orchid is a must-try. Smooth, sweet and extremely delicious I can highly recommend this drink.

Pink Orchid

Vanilla Vodka, Raspberry Liqueur, Cranberry Juice, Lime Juice, Sugar Syrup and Egg White.

As a group, we were tasted to create our own sour cocktail which was extremely fun. After tasting, smelling and a lot of debating, we decided on our very own Beauregarde sours. Created with Porter's Gin, violet liqueur, lemon juice and agave, the cocktail tasted exactmly like parma violets, hence the connection with Violet Beauregarde from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We got so excited by our creation that we also came up with the perfect place to associate the cocktail with - Aberdeen's very own Botanical Gardens. Sadly we didn't win the cocktail competition, but this cocktail was a winner in my eyes. I'd actually sampled something quite similar at the Butchershop in Glasgow, so was pretty impressed with the drink. (You can read my review of The Butchershop here).

To finish the evening off, we were then treated to some cheese and meat platters which went down great with everyone. A little merry to say the least, everyone was excited about the addition of food into the mix. It may have been nice to have some food whilst indulging in all the drinks to help soak up some of the alcohol, however I had no issues delving into it after the evening had finished.

A big thanks to the team at Orchid for hosting us, and giving us a sneak peak of what's to come! The new menu launches very soon (mid - end of Nov) so keep an eye out on their social media pages for when it launches.

  For Now...

Just Julia

Porter's Gin launch and Orchid's sixth birthday bash

Cocktails, or gin, cocktails or gin? For anyone who knows me, making quick decisions can be extremely challenging for me; the meaning of indecisive is me in a nutshell. However, when I received an invite to my favourite bar's birthday bash, and the launch of Porter's gin, its safe to say this was one decision that would be made in a heartbeat.

Orchid has been, and still is, one of my favourite cocktail bars in Aberdeen. The talented, creative team behind the bar put their heart and soul into the business, mastering the art of cocktail making presenting works of art right in front of customers faces. With cocktails on my mind (which they very much are majority of the time), I headed to the bar one cold December evening to indulge in some liquid gold.

On arrival to celebrate this special evening, guests were treated to a fantastic fizzy bellini, welcomed into the cosy bar to begin the celebrations and most importantly hear all about the gin everyone is talking about. What I love about a good old Orchid birthday bash, is the generosity and kind-heartedness of owner, Ben Iravani. For one hour during the celebrations a free bar is called, and all that is asked of guests is for those getting a drink is to put some money in the jar for the bar's chosen charity. A real nice touch if you ask me.

Anyway, back to the point; the gin.

Yes it's bottling/labelling is extremely professional, and yes it tastes phenomenal, but my favourite thing about this gin is that it's the first gin in over 100 years to be distilled in my home town, Aberdeen.

The gin has been created by three talented masterminds (see below for my seven things you need to know about Porter's Gin), who have used a number of different, unusual botanicals, and perfected distilling techniques to create this wee beauty. And oh what a beauty it is.

Porter's Gin: The seven things you need to know...

• It was created by drinks enthusiast trio: Ben Iravani, Alex Lawrence and Josh Rennie.
• It is the first gin to be distilled in Aberdeen in over 100 years, and it tastes bloody delicious.
• The gin is named after Professor Andrew Porter of Aberdeen University, after he sourced a rotary evaporator for the trio who then put it to the test to create the gin. (A very snazzy piece of equipment indeed!)
• The temperature the gin is distilled at plays a huge part in its taste. (Did you really think they would give this information away, come on guys!)
• The modern, cold-distilled part of the gin is created in Aberdeen. The traditional part of the gin was achieved by working with a UK distillery which has over 250 years experience in the art of gin making.
• The 'distillery' where the gin is cold-distilled was once an old garage.
• The gin boasts twelve botanicals, one of the main botanicals being Buddha's Hand; a citrus fruit with finger-like segments which resembles a human hand!

If you haven't already managed to sample the gin, don't panic, you can sample the tipple at Orchid or its sister bar, 99 Bar and Kitchen, although, I have a feeling this specific gin will be gracing the shelves of many other bars in Aberdeen and will prove extremely popular with us Scots. 

Orchid also has a number of different cocktails on their latest menu which incorporates the gin into its drinks offering. I would definitely recommend the Spruce Almighty, Porter's Fizz or Kamm Doon Son! All very tasty and very smooth on the palette. Or, you could always go for a traditional gin and tonic, classy and satisfying, what more could you want from a drink!? Sláinte!

  For Now...

Just Julia