Nature inspired cocktails

In my twenties, I took a job at a small plant nursery to combat restaurant burnout and what started as a simple retail gig became an obsession. I quickly transitioned from growing a few basic houseplants at home to nurturing a collection of over 200 orchids in my tiny studio apartment. By night, I was learning about craft gins and small batch whiskies and by day I was studying the garden’s 250 acres. In my backyard I was growing herbs and flowers like scented geraniums, lemon balm and agastache, becoming intimate with how they grew, which parts of the plant gave off aroma, and the best ways to extract their flavour in edible form so that I could use them in my cocktails.

There’s a whole botanical world for bar staff to explore, and you don’t have to be a bitters geek to incorporate herbs and flowers into your drinks. The lightbulb moment for me was when I realised that every spirit comes from a plant in some way: roots, bark, stems, seeds, flowers, fruit and vegetables. The plant kingdom is an endless source of inspiration for me.

• A great way to introduce new flavours to your cocktails is by using flowers and herbs.

• Syrups are a great way to incorporate plant notes into a cocktail.

• Infusions are a simple way to introduce complexity to a drink.

• The garnish is an important opportunity to create a visual preview of the cocktail’s flavours, as well as an aroma to precede each sip.

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