They are classics for a reason. A Negronia gin tonic or a Mojito will always have their place bars. However, the renewal and rise of the cocktail bar of recent years provided the field with star professionals who came with their own touch and authorship. And from his hand, until the most classic cocktails They found their reinvention.
the pleasure of experiencing
The most important thing when making a cocktail is to know in detail its ingredients and how they combine with each other. The historical ones, part of the repertoire of every bar, have this and it is one of the factors that has made their reinvention so close at hand. “To make a delicious cocktail we must understand its structure, aroma, flavor and texture. We already know this from the classics, and with our senses we can reinterpret them over and over again and thus immerse ourselves in an infinite creative universe,” says Sabrina Traverso, bartender at Skyy Vodka and creator of a coconut mojitos very summery and cool. “The most exciting thing about discovering classic recipes is reinventing them; otherwise they would be lost in the cocktail books”, he sentences.
Another pleasure that these preparations give is starting from a known base and then starting to experiment with textures. That’s what they did at Casa Cavia with the Bloody Mary, clarifying it (eliminating all the solids so that it remains a crystal or brilliant color), with such skill that they managed to turn it into a landmark of their own. “We decided to change it and today it became our classic to accompany brunch. We prepare our own bloody mix with tomatoes and different vegetables from the garden to complement flavors”, illustrates Flavia Arroyo, creator of the bar menu.
And if the cocktail is native to other lands, the grace also lies in seeking a link with indigenous influences. This is how the pisco sour was treated in Osaka, where Nicolás Hernando created the Aka Sour, made using the shake method with pisco, cardamom honey, lime, egg white and hibiscus and malbec ice. “We want the cocktail to evolve, so that the first sip is not the same as the last, and above all, achieve a cultural crossroads between Japan, Peru and Argentina,” Hernando details.
most praised
One of the most experienced drinks is the gin and tonic, an absolute classic and renewed star on the menus of every self-respecting trendy bar. For Ramiro Ferreri, bartender, creator of his own company of bars for events and author of a gin and tonic with blackberries and Bulldog gin, the reason why the classic cocktail bar began to revert has to do with the fact that the ingredients used to be very basic. “Gastronomy and the globalization of products are at everyone’s fingertips. Customers are looking for new textures and flavors,” he maintains.
Thus, in Mamba they offer 12! reversals of gin tonic, in January the Gin Té Nic, with a mix of tea and kombucha, at Aldo’s they seduce with a version with the addition of rica-rica, lime juice and Angostura bitter and at Tribu they propose the Berry Tonic, with Campari, Strawberry cordial, grapefruit juice and tonic. Winehaus’s Pink Tonic also stands out, which adds malbec rosé and red fruits, and of which its owner partner, Angie Nougues, explains: “we think of it for the heat, because people tend to consume less wine; at the same time, many women prefer cocktails”.
The second podium is taken by the Negroni, the classic Italian cocktail prepared with gin, Campari and red vermouth, which in expert hands can also take another flight. This is what he did at Pony Line, the Four Seasons Buenos Aires bar, where his Negroni Vigilante is sophisticated and Argentinian by adding fresh quince and Morbier-style cheese. “One of the searches for this year’s bar was to get closer to the kitchen by exploring other techniques and incorporating new ingredients,” they say from the bar. In this case, a quince-infused gin and a cheese-infused vermouth were achieved, which generates a less alcoholic sensation than the classic Negroni and the richness of other aromas, flavors and volume in the mouth. Without a doubt, a variant to continue exploring the mastery of our cocktails, capable of reinventing even the most iconic drinks.
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