Liquid intelligence

Cocktail making tips from the top with hospitality maestro Jack Sotti

Nothing says celebration quite like a classic Champagne cocktail. Adding a good slug of highquality booze to a glass of the old bubbly not only levels up your celebrations but screams, luxury and excess. And when we’re talking Champagne cocktails I mean real Champagne, the biscuity, toasted brioche-y, green-apple skin guy from the Champagne region of France. Prosecco, while having many qualities, simply doesn’t cut the mustard in this particular context.

But times are tough, so I pose the question: is there any way of replicating the flavours and effervescence of a Champagne cocktail, without having to splash out on a bottle of Dom? Answer? You can get pretty damn close!

You will first need to consider the balance of flavours, the acidity and of course the carbonation. You should also consider which Champagne cocktail you’re looking to emulate.

In this case, let’s pick a French 75, originally made with gin or Cognac, fresh lemon, simple sugar syrup and Champagne. Now, let’s break this cocktail down into its component parts.

Some key nuances we are looking to emulate are oak, spice, citrus, orchard fruit, florals, nuttiness and toastiness. This can be replicated with oaked, fruity spirits like calvados, Armagnac and Cognac, plus the inclusion of fresh pressed green-apple juice for acidity. Hints of fortified wines will bring in nuttiness and acidity, and floral liqueurs of elderflower, peach or rose can provide delicate top notes.

Acidity wise we have a complex mix, including strong malic and tartaric acids, from the wine itself, citric acid from the lemon, and carbonic acid from the bubbles. This layered acidity is what provides the length and texture of a great Champagne cocktail. This can be replicated by blending a solution of malic, citric and tartaric acids in a ratio of 3:2:1 in a concentration of 20 per cent acid to water.

Shampagne

250g Alsace Pinot Grigio 150g filtered Granny Smith apple juice 100g Fanny Fougerat VS Cognac 10g crème de Pêche 25g sugar syrup 2:1 25g manzanilla sherry 100g mineral water with high calcium content, Evian will suffice here 7.5g Champagne acid solution*

Method: *To make a Champagne acid solution, blend 12g of malic acid, 8g citric acid and 4g of tartaric acid in 96g of water, and stir to dissolve.

Filter through a coffee filter, chill and carbonate to your heart’s content!

Finally, Champagne is known for its fine, intense bubbles, each one popping on the surface (around 400 per second) delivering aromatics straight to the nose of the drinker.

To achieve anywhere near the same quality of fizz you must consider the following: clarity, temperature, pressure and time.

Ensure the liquid you are carbonating is as clear as possible – any particles will create foaming and kill your carbonation quickly. Use a coffee filter.

Next, make sure the liquid is cold but not freezing, 1ºC is ideal here, as the CO2 will dissolve easier in chilled liquid.

Finally, to force carbonate you ideally need high pressure (we’re talking 40 psi) or a long time under pressure (1-3 days). Good carbonation can be achieved with a soda stream, which sits around 15 psi, but you would have to keep it in the fridge throughout the carbonation process. I would recommend either building a custom carbonation set-up, or purchasing a DrinkMate carbonator for the same price as a SodaStream. That way you can store your fizzy liquid under pressure in the fridge for a few days and gently release the pressure when it’s time to open.

YOU MUST CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING: CLARITY, TEMPERATURE, PRESSURE AND TIME

MAINS & MARTINIS

Three very different places to celebrate three very different occasions: posh Sunday lunch, decadent theatre experience and a seductive bar, all decked out for the holiday season

Common Decency

NOMAD LONDON, 28 BOW ST, WC2E 7AW THENOMADHOTEL.COM £££

The vibe Who would have guessed a onetime coal shed could be polished into such a diamond, something so totally gorgeous and glam? Fully lush with a hint of the louche, Common Decency is the latest addition to the fab food and drink offering from the ace team at NoMad London. Honestly, it’s a real gem. Particularly when all dressed up for the six-week Holiday Spectacular, with saucy Santa and festive decorations (Wed and Thurs, 6pm-12am; Fri and Sat, 6pm-1am. Until 30 December).

Cleverly sectioned into four distinct zones – the sultry and playful lounge, with DJ and performances, the bar with mesmerising copper mural, a curtainedoff standing area for groups, and three private snugs in the former coal sheds – it’s just the right side of posh to make you feel you’re going out, with the kind of first-class hospitality that makes you feel right at home.

The food More sexy bites than full-on dinner – it’s all about sharing plates to seduce the palate. There’s caviar on crisp potato rosti with bonito cream; clams baked with Parmesan; brioche and smoked bacon; mussels, coconut curry, lime and mint, and chips with rosemary and lemon and more besides, all absolutely divine.

The drinks Where to start? Leo Robitschek and Liana Oster have clearly had fun creating a serious and delicious drinks menu that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The names are a clue. From the Holiday Spectacular menu we go for Jingle all the Whey (Altos Reposado Tequila, mince-pie meat, Cocchi Americano and shortbread whey), and Gnome Alone (Elyx Vodka, lime, Amaro Averna, gingerbread spice, ginger and cinnamon) . Not to be missed is the Chrimbo Negroni (Beefeater London Dry Gin, Campari, 1757 Rosso Vermouth and mince-pie syrup), and the best Eggnog (Martell VS, Chivas 15 Year-Old, Havana Selección de Maestros, bourbon, Frangelico). It’s available in bottles to take away but if you fancy having a go at making at yourself, see recipe on page 17.

Champagne and canapes on the menu at the Moët & Chandon Suite at the Kit Kat Club

Moët & Chandon Suite at Kit Kat Club

PLAYHOUSE THEATRE, NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE, WC2N 5DE KITKATCLUB.COM £££

The vibe Before we get to the experience, we have to bow to the amazingness of Callum Scott Howells, completely bossing it in the lead role as emcee in Cabaret. The Moët & Chandon Suite suits him to a ‘T’. This new addition is for anyone who fancies treating themselves to the proverbial cherry on top of an already very tasty cake. Small, dark and moody, the room comes with its own separate entrance, bar and dedicated bartender, as well as private bathrooms and VIP host to guide us to and from our theatre seats. Unlimited food and drink is included in the ticket price, and with a capacity of just 26, it’s an intimate and swanky way to lose yourself in the magic and theatrical world of the Kit Kat Club.

The food Pre-performance, a series of trays, including crispy ox cheek bonbon with horseradish, chilled Andalusian gazpacho; salt-baked baby potato, caviar and crème-fraîche; marinated salmon, chilli, sesame, and lime-dressed green-bean niçoise, is proffered. Bite-size desserts of raspberry sorbet with Moët & Chandon jelly and chocolate brownie, caramelised white chocolate, and seasalt bitter chocolate sauce make the rounds during the interval.

The drinks It’s called the Moët & Chandon Suite for a reason – all four cocktails (save for the non-alcs) are charged with either Moët & Chandon Imperial Brut or Moët Rose Imperial. How totally and utterly fabulous! We love The Toast of Mayfair (Moët Imperial Champagne Brut, gold dust, Amaretto and lychee), which echoes the decadent look and feel of the show itself.

The Lanesborough Grill

HYDE PARK CORNER, SW1X 7TA OETKERCOLLECTION.COM £££

The vibe The room is everything you want from a five-star hotel, and then some – think crystal chandeliers, ornate friezes, Doric columns and just the right amount of formality to let you know that you don’t have to worry about a thing. Sit back, relax, forget the real world and let the symphony of calming blues and light beaming through the domed glass roof set the scene for a sumptuous three-course lunch. Complete with live piano accompaniment.

The food While nothing and no one will ever beat a really good homemade Sunday lunch, we bet your Sunday roast hero doesn’t serve and slice perfectly cooked beef from a trolley. Hmm, thought not. The main event of roast sirloin of Hereford beef, horseradish and apple cream, Yorkshire pudding and roast potatoes is a triumph, not only in the way that it’s carved with aplomb table side, but in presentation and taste. The same goes for the beef wellington which comes with salt-baked carrots and red wine sauce. It looks like a tiny (but beautiful) portion on the plate, however, it turns out to be just the right amount (thanks to a couple of potatoes snaffled from the other meal). We couldn’t manage a dessert each but soldiered bravely through an oh-so fabulous caramelised brioche pudding, burnt orange puree and milk ice cream to share. Utterly divine.

The drinks We haven’t seen V-shaped 10 oz Martini glasses like these for years. Not that we’re complaining, in this setting they didn’t feel out of place, more of a respectful nod to the grandeur of the room. We both opted for Martinis: gin with a lemon twist in one; vodka and olive in the other – both strong, ice cold and decidedly delicious. Exactly what Sundays were made for.