With a taste of summer
Creating cocktails is all about making tiny adjustments. You play it by ear. Consider what you might do differently. Adjust the ingredients. Until you finally get it spot-on.
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This is roughly the process behind Artipelag’s new summer cocktail. Tim Good, the bartender behind it, based it on a cocktail he once tried. A nice cocktail, but not perfect. He felt there was room for improvement.
He tried bilberries in various guises for flavour and he created a version based on gin for an event, but he finally settled on a version based on vodka. But bilberries were always one ingredient. Essential, according to Tim Good.
– This cocktail is completely in tune with Artipelag’s environmental and locally grown ethos. You can pick bilberries here in the woods around the art gallery; it feels better than making something with, say, Spanish lime. It’s good for people who want to try to make this cocktail at home too: most of us have some bilberries at home in the freezer.
He sees several areas of use for the cocktail, it makes a wonderful aperitif, but perhaps most importantly it can be enjoyed on its own terms. In the setting only Artipelag can provide.
– In summertime we stay open for longer in the evenings, of course, and this cocktail is perfect if you want to sit on the terrace, admire the view and think about the meaning of life, he says.
It’s no coincidence that Tim Good mentions the terrace and the view. As one of the people who’s been involved in Artipelag’s entire journey, all six and a half years, he’s developed a deep affection for its unique location.
– There can’t be many workplaces where you can start the day with a cup of coffee outdoors with a view of the archipelago. I never get tired of it.
Nordic Bilberry Caipiroska
4 cl Absolut vodka
1 cl De Kuyper Blueberry
1,5 cl fresh lemon juice
1,5 cl syrup
ca 8-10 frozen bilberries
Method:
1. Pour lemon juice and syrup into a whisky glass with bilberries.
2. Fill the glass with crushed ice and stir. Pour in vodka and De Kuyper Blueberry. Stir and top with a little more ice.
3. Garnish with a sprig of bilberry.
European bilberries should not be confused with American and Canadian blueberries – they are two different members of the same family.
This is an article from the Artipelag yearly magazine produced in 2019 by Make Your Mark. Text: Mattias Dahlström. Photo: Johan Strindberg.