When your resort is shortlisted by Time as one of the best in the world, heads begin to turn. That’s the case for Casa Sol, a stunning restaurant within a remarkable resort in Turkey. And it’s not just the lodging and hospitality that’s sent straight from heaven, it’s the incredible cocktail program as well.
Now, drinks like this are often a little more complex than your go-to three-ingredient cocktail. But that’s to be expected when you’re in the business of impressing your guests to no end. We were lucky enough to not only get some recipes from the acclaimed resort, but some pro tips too.
Shavinraj Gopinath is the beverage manager at Maxx Royal Bodrum Resort, home of Casa Sol. He says the research and development phase for creating an eight-drink cocktail menu takes anywhere from two-to-five months. The process ensures that only the very best drinks make it on the house list.
Presently, the bar team is injecting bottles with additional flavors, adding character and nuance. Why infuse spirits with tea? “Because it’s clean, pure and very natural, which makes it easier to extract flavor into liquids,” Gopinath says. They use an assortment of teas to infuse everything from gin to vodka at the moment.
Readers may not be able to pull these off quite like they do at the resort, but they can certainly improve their home bartending game with some tips and get close enough to have a delicious beverage in hand. “Citrus peels are so often overlooked, and the essential oils are great for smells and taste,” Gopinath says. “If you want to try something a bit more complex, you can make bitters from these skins by taking a neutral spirit like vodka and sous vide it for one hour and strain. If you don’t have a sous vide, you can use a rice cooker the same way and press warm and you can achieve the same results.”
The beverage manager also insists you have the following tools at your disposal:
- Shake
- Strainer / Fine strainer
- Jigger
- Bar spoon
- Ice
- Glassware
- Jar
- Coffee filter paper
- Funnel
- Plastic or glass container
Ready for some truly inspired drinks? Read on for some of the best cocktails from one of the best resorts, set on the sun-kissed Aegean coast of Turkey.
Silk Road
This drink involves one of the most interesting vodka infusions we’ve seen in a while, taking on cardamom and fennel.
Ingredients:
- 45ml Mango Cardamom & Fennel Tea-infused Ketel One Vodka*
- 15ml Cointreau
- 20ml fresh lime juice
- 60ml satsuma purée
- 10ml simple syrup (2:1)
*Mango Cardamom & Fennel Tea-infused Ketel One Vodka: Infuse 50 grams Melez Mango Cardamom & Fennel Tea into 1000ml vodka overnight at room temperature.
Method:
- Shake, strain over fresh ice into a rocks glass.
Vamos
This drink calls for your best cactus cup, should you have one. Is it easy to create? No, but the results are absolutely magical. If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.
Ingredients:
- 45ml Mountain Blend Tea-infused Casamigos Mezcal*
- 15ml cacao nibs-infused Cointreau**
- 20ml fresh lime juice
- 10ml pomelo oleo saccharum***
*Mountain Blend Tea-infused Casamigos Mezcal: Infuse 50 grams Melez Mountain Blend Tea into 1000ml mezcal overnight at room temperature.
**Cacao Nibs-infused Cointreau: Infuse 35g cacao nibs into 700ml Cointreau overnight at room temperature
***Pomelo Oleo Saccharum: Peel about 200 grams of pomelo skin, combine with 100 grams sugar and a pinch of salt. Let sit until syrup forms. Blend leftover peels with 200 ml water, strain, and mix with initial syrup.
Method:
- Shake, strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass.
- Garnish with a grapefruit wedge.
Deep Breaths
Combining the refreshing notes of eucalyptus and mint, along with stone fruit, berries, and citrus, this cocktail has us swooning.
Ingredients:
- 45 ml Eucalyptus & Mint Tea-Infused Roku Gin*
- 15 ml maraschino liqueur (or Chambord as substitute)
- 10 ml honey syrup (2:1)
- 30 ml dragonfruit & blackberry purée**
- 20 ml fresh pink grapefruit juice
*Eucalyptus & Mint Tea-Infused Roku Gin: Infuse 35 grams Eucalyptus & Mint Tea into 700 ml Roku gin overnight.
**Dragonfruit & Blackberry Purée: Blend 100 grams dragonfruit and 100 grams blackberries with a splash of water and pinch of salt.
Method:
- Shake, strain over ice in a fresh rocks glass.
- Garnish with blackberry.
Nirvana
A work of art that involves another tea infusion along with some clarification, this cocktail lives up to its name.
Ingredients:
- 50 ml Blue Lotus & Jasmine Tea-Infused Don Julio Blanco*
- 60 ml clear starfruit juice**
- 30 ml clear lime juice**
- 15 ml longan honey***
*Blue Lotus & Jasmine Tea-Infused Don Julio Blanco: Infuse 17 1/2 grams Blue Lotus flowers and 17 1/2 grams Jasmine tea into 700 ml tequila overnight. Filter with coffee paper due to flower pulp.
**Clear Starfruit Juice, Clear Lime Juice: Clarify starfruit and lime juices with a coffee filter. Re-filter for clearer results.
***Longan Honey: Boil 100 grams honey, 10 grams longan, and 20 ml water. Strain and store refrigerated for up to 1 month.
Method:
- Shake and strain over fresh ice in a highball glass, garnish with an edible flower.
Need an extra hand? Check out our spirit infusion guide, which includes some sage advice from somebody very much in the know. Enjoy those cocktails.
