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Butter Up!
Written by Alex Fleischer
Darling’s Signature Gin may be the first buttered gin in Australia, but butter and gin in cocktails do go a way back! Made famous with a bacon-infused Old Fashioned, ‘fat washing’ is a method used by chefs and bartenders to introduce flavours into alcohol from molten fats. This is not limited to butter or bacon; other fats such as coconut oil, duck fat, olive oil, – even cheeses! – can introduce a subtle rich flavour and silky mouthfeel to all kinds of spirits.
While Darling’s Gin utilises esters (or vapours) during the distilling process, buttering a gin is a relatively straightforward DIY project with a little bit of forward thinking. If you’re enjoying the creaminess of this month’s gin and want to kick things up a notch, be sure to give it a try with some of your other favourite gins!
Some combinations to get your creative juices flowing: barrel-aged gin with spiced butter, bourbon and melted smoky bacon fat, rum and coconut oil, gin and olive oil, or vodka and chilli oil. Yum! Try out some of our favourite recipes below to get you started.
HOW TO BUTTER A GIN
Add 100ml of gin to a jar with 20g of melted unsalted butter (for 2 serves, or 100g fat to 500ml of spirit). If using, add in spices of choice; we loved star anise and a cinnamon stick, but once you’ve got the hang of it, you can adjust to complement the gin and your favourite cocktails!
Put the lid on the jar and give it a hard shake. Leave at room temperature for about 4 to 5 hours for the flavours to infuse then put the jar in the freezer overnight. After 12 hours, make a small hole in the butter layer and pour out the gin, sieving to remove spices.
Buttered Orchard Punch
Original recipe via projecttaste.com
Savoury rather than overly sweet, serve this warm in your favourite mug or scale up the recipe for a party punch your guests won’t forget!
INGREDIENTS
- 50ml Darling Gin or Buttered gin of choice
- 50ml cider
- 50ml fresh apple juice
- 25ml vanilla syrup
- 25ml lemon juice
- 5ml crème de cassis
GARNISH
- Sprig of Rosemary
METHOD
Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. If serving cold, add ice and stir gently, then strain into a pair of glasses. If serving warm (recommended), pour into a saucepan and heat gently: serve in your favourite mug. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary.
Hot Buttered Gin
Image © Bass & Flinders via Drink Melbourne
Original recipe via drinkmelbourne.com.au
INGREDIENTS
- 45ml Darling Gin
- 60ml hot water
- 20ml sugar syrup (infused with cloves, cardamom, cinnamon and orange)
- 1 generous knob of butter
GARNISH
- 1 cinnamon quill, to garnish
- 1 orange peel, to garnish
METHOD
Heat all ingredients – except garnishes – in a small saucepan over low heat until butter is melted and the flavours have infused (do not simmer or boil). Pour warm into a goblet glass. Garnish with the cinnamon quill and orange peel (and some fig if you’re feeling fancy).
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Garden Street Collector's Series Edition One
This gin is a nod to you, our members. We’ve tasted hundreds of delicious Australian gins over the years and every year our tasting panel has the (really terrible) job of choosing their 12 favourite gins to share with you. It’s tough competition and they’re a very picky bunch!
Twelve months ago, we floated the idea of making something exclusively for our members; something one off and never to be repeated. It needed to be something for the collectors to add to their gin shelves and moreover, we had to make a product we were proud to share, and one delicious enough to get past our tasting panel!
