Full of Eastern Promise...

Valentine's Day is nearly upon us and whether you are arsed or not, it's a good reason to design a new cocktail. 

We were planning to host a retail tasting on Friday 13th, we were asked to show a cocktail using SW4 London Dry Gin and Combier UK Rose Creme Liqueur....

This got me thinking about Turkish Delight, more specifically Fry's Turkish Delight. Which in turn, got me thinking about La Maison Fontaine Chocolat...  

Initially, I tried a layered shot with the Rose and Chocolat and, perhaps unsurprisingly, it worked rather well...  Then to the task of making a proper cocktail... Sour Styley and lo...    

Full of Eastern Promise... 

25ml SW4 London Dry Gin

20ml La Maison Fontaine Chocolat

20ml Combier Creme Rose Liqueur

20ml Lemon Juice

20ml Egg White

3 drops Dale DeGroff's Pimento Aromatic Bitters

These measurements are by no means fixed, more Gin, less egg white, more Chocolat etc. are all possible... It's all a matter of tasting and tinkering. These ratios worked for me. Maybe a tad more Gin... :-)

Method: Dry shake (without ice) all the ingredients together bar the Bitters, then add the ice and shake more vigorously. Strain into a chilled coupette. Garnish with quality cocktail cherries and add the 3 x drops of Bitters.
Profile: Good balance between sweet and sour, juicy acidity gets the palate salivating, quickly tempered by soft sweetness. SW4 is a solid Gin with good backbone, can't go wrong there. The rose is delightful and works well with the floral notes of the Grand Wormwood from the Chocolat. All the while, there's the unifying aromatic hint of the Bitters and a silky chocolate backdrop. So, is it "Full of Eastern Promise"? Well, given that's the tagline for Fry's Turkish Delight, I'd say this cocktail gets far closer to delivering...
No, that is not my Fry's Turkish Delight in the photo. Yes, of course you can have it.