A botanical bazaar

One of the perks of living in a big city is the number and variety of activities happening around us. We've been trying to take advantage of these opportunities when we can. Last night we went to an event called the "Botanical Bazaar." It was put on by Bombay Sapphire (gin maker) and was focused around the ten botanicals they use to make their gin and the countries they source those botanicals. I didn't know Bombay used so many botanicals and quite a few of them were unfamiliar to me. In addition to the juniper berries, Bombay adds orris root, grains of paradise, almonds, cubeb berries, angelica, cassia bark, coriander, liquorice, and lemon peel. There was a station for each ingredient so you could see, smell, and sometimes taste the raw ingredients.

The evening was focused around five of the eight source countries--Germany, Italy, Spain, Morocco, and China (missing Vietnam, Java, and Ghana). The room was set up to imitate a market bazaar feel and each country had a unique gin cocktail and food item on offer. Each ticket to the event included two drinks and two food items, and a two-hour window to partake of the food, drinks, and atmosphere. 

It was a splendid event! We walked into the venue and were blasted with floral aromas from the displays set up to showcase the different botanicals. After a complimentary cocktail showcasing one of the ten ingredients (Pete had cubeb berry and I chose cassia bark), we walked up a narrow staircase that delivered us to the "market." Because we had four cocktail tokens between us, we decided to divide and conquer so we could try as many flavors as possible. The German cocktail had beer in it, so that was a natural one to leave out since I cannot drink it (beer = gluten). 

the juniper berry - the key ingredient that gives gin its distinctive taste

one of the botanical displays (licorice from China)

the "market"

Pete's first cocktail from Spain was a "choose your own adventure" sort. He had to choose a botanical "paint" as his base--pomegranate, blue-green algae, or turmeric. He went with turmeric, proceeded to fill his glass with on-tap gin and tonic (!) and then added appropriate botanicals to bring out the turmeric. The grapefruit, coriander, and ginger additions made for a savory gin and tonic. 

Pete painting his glass with turmeric slurry

gin and tonic on tap, anyone?!

the melange of botanics for enhanced flavor goodness

I headed to Morocco for the Sunset Sapphire Tea cocktail. The making of this cocktail was a visually interesting process that included dry ice and a tea pot. The ingredients were also quite unusual for a gin cocktail--chocolate and red bush tea. The flavor was interesting, particularly the chocolate, but it was good in small doses. 

the smoking teapot full of goodness

a new twist on afternoon tea!

Pete's second cocktail from Italy was a refreshing blend of Bombay Sapphire and carrot rosé, with rosemary spritz. This was definitely the lightest cocktail of the night and Pete's favorite. My second drink was a beautiful concoction from China called the Dragon Tiki Sling. It didn't have an umbrella, but it certainly could have! Gin, pineapple, passionfruit, and bitters rounded out that sweet, but delightful drink. 

a gin-rosé blend

as dangerous as a long island ice tea...

When we bought the tickets to the event, we were not entirely sure what we were signing up for, but it was an awesome evening and we are happy we got to enjoy a novel experience. I'm not sure we will be making any of the cocktails at home, but our gin horizons were definitely expanded.