A few weeks ago, I published my recipe for MY version of the Porn Star Martini. Its a tried and tested recipe that I’ve used for the last 3 years, simply because you guys love it. As in Absolutely LOVE it.
However it drew some amusing comments from other bartenders and bars about how it wasn’t the proper recipe…
Now granted, its not exactly the same recipe that legend Douglas Ankrah created way back in 2002. However when you read his recipe, it is in essence just a Vanilla and Passion Fruit Martini served with a shot of Prosecco. When you look at my recipe, my take on the Porn Star Martini is again, a Vanilla and Passion Fruit Martini…and in actual fact, not wildly different at all.
So this begs the question;
Can a Cocktail Recipe be wrong?
As most of you reading this know, I’ve been behind the Bar for 20 years now. I’d say that’s a shed load of experience.
But am I the best Bartender out there? Am I the Authority on Cocktails?
No.
I can’t claim to be, as I never really got involved in Cocktail Competitions during my youth. Nor do I wish to be. I never had the ego to want to be the best. Instead, I chose a different route. I dedicated my career to making the tastiest drinks I could possibly make, that my type of customers would actually order and want to drink….not just once to try it, but over, and over….and over again!
You see in Bartending, there is no right or wrong recipe. There is no one individual or organisation who can say that’s right or wrong. Take the humble Sex on the Beach for example. A quick Google search results in 3 equally as tasty recipes, all from 3 leading UK Bar Chains. Which one of them has the correct recipe? And is the correct recipe tastier than the other 2? Also the amazing Espresso Martini has a different recipe in every bar you walk in to. The ONLY people that can judge that, are the actual customers buying the drinks.
The same can be said the same about Cooking. When researching this Blog post, in 2 minutes I found 6 different Roast Chicken recipes and 3 different Lasagne recipes. Which one of those is correct?!
Over my 20 years or Bartending…16 of which have been out and out Cocktails…I’ve recreated a lot of popular Recipes and put my own twist on them, using the ingredients I could easily get from my Suppliers.
Over the last 2 years though, I’ve discovered a new passion, a new USP. I love to share recipes that you guys can make at home, by using ingredients that are readily available from your local Supermarket.
And while Thirst First’s Cocktail menu for Events is a tad different…there’s lots of weird and wonderful using some really cool brands…Steve the Barman’s personal Menu is all about the Supermarkets, simply because you guys don’t have access to a hell of a lot of products that us pros do. I want you guys to be able to go away and make tasty drinks for yourselves. I want you guys to have more imagination than just defaulting to Pimms and Lemonade at your Saturday Afternoon BBQs. By taking great Cocktails and flipping up the recipes to make them more accessible to you guys, well, there’s nothing wrong with that…is there?!
Starting this Friday (14th August), I will be sharing amazing recipes each week, that you guys can make for yourselves at home. Everything from very simple serves, right through to the more in-depth Cocktails. However, they will always have the common theme and will use ingredients that you can purchase from the big 3… Tesco’s, Sainsburys and Waitrose.
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