Check Out the Winning Cocktails in Silks Gin Garden to Glass Cocktail Competition

By Chilled Magazine

Check out the THREE (3) Winners in the Silks Gin Garden to Glass Cocktail Competition.

 

The Cooney family, of Boann Distillery, Ireland, invited the Chilled 100 Bartenders to compete for cash prizes in the Silks Gin Garden to Glass cocktail competition.

 

“We wanted to introduce our contemporary style gin to the world of American bartenders and what better way than to run a cocktail competition with the best of the best!” says Sally Anne Cooney, co-founder, Boann Distillery. “We are always on the lookout for new cocktails and love the creativity that comes with cocktail creation.”

 

The competition brought together some of the most talented bartender in the industry in an interpretation of Garden to Glass. “They have created some of the most exciting and unusual cocktails. The bartenders have taken our “Garden to Glass” theme and interpreted it in many ways and incorporated such interesting ingredients and flavor profiles.”

 


 

Grand Prize Winner

$2000

 


Nadine Medina

Las Vegas, NV

I grew up with a mom that had a green thumb. I remember all the beautiful aromas of the vegetable garden, herb, fruits, flowers, and the nearby meadow. When I tasted Silks Gin, that’s what it reminded me of. That once in a blue moon there’s a perfect night where you can smell, taste, and see all those beautiful things, because it’s just bright enough to see but still dark out!

 

Blue Moons & Meadows

 

Blue Moons & Meadows

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ oz. Silks Irish Dry Gin
  • 
¾ oz, violet syrup
  • ¾ oz. fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • ¼ oz. yuzu juice
  • 
¼ oz. rosewater
  • 
5 dashes Angostura chocolate bitters
  • 
1 oz. egg white

Preparation: Put all ingredients in shaker tin with ice and dilute well by shaking until outer tin is frosted. Strain ingredients through a double strainer and tap the side of the second strainer to get a beautiful egg white top. Garnish with Blue Pansy and dehydrated corn flower petals

 


 

2nd Place Winner

$1000

 


Jes Gutierrez-Switaj

Brooklyn, NY

When I was older, I moved to Arizona, a place magical in its own way. The intoxicating scent of citrus blossoms filling the air everywhere you go. It must be what perfumes heaven. Citrus in such abundance you couldn’t give it away. The desert was also the only place I’ve ever been successful in growing lavender, it’s fragrant blossoms just as potent as those of the lemon trees. I used to sit outside late at night and watch the stars while basking in its heady bouquet.

Taste and scent have such a strong memory connection, and with this cocktail I wanted to capture the essence of flavors and aromas that were particularly meaningful to me personally, just all in one glass!

 

Lavender Bramble

 

Lavender Bramble

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz Silks Gin
  • 1 oz Lavender Syrup*
  • 
1 oz Lemon Juice
  • 
Blackberries
  • 
Mint

Preparation: Muddle 4-5 blackberries and a sprig or two of mint in the bottom of glass. Fill glass with crushed or pebble ice. Separately, combine Silks Gin, lavender syrup, and lemon juice. Stir to incorporate syrup well. Pour into glass. Garnish. Stir before enjoying. Garnish with fresh mint, lemon wheel, blackberries.

*Lavender Syrup: Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 
1/2 cup water, 2 Tablespoons food grade dried lavender flowers, Squeeze of lemon in a small saucepan on medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves, simmer until mixture reduces by about half. Fine strain, bottle and refrigerate.

 


 

3rd Place Winner

$500

 


Donna Meister

Jacksonville, FL

I’ve never personally had a green thumb, but if there’s one plant anyone can cultivate and keep alive in the south, it’s aloe. When I tasted the clean, floral flavors of Silks Irish Dry Gin, I knew I wanted to craft a refreshing drink that wouldn’t overpower the delicate botanicals already present in the spirit and aloe was the perfect carrier to allow those flavors to bloom. I then chose to highlight some of the less prevalent botanicals used to make the gin, chamomile, and sage, for their calming effects and intense aromatics. Honey is used as a sweetener as a nod to the honey used in the gin’s production as well. To honor the distillery’s commitment to sustainability, the garnishes came from ingredients already being used in the drink to use every part of the fruit and herb. The butterfly pea flower tea float on top of the drink mimics the ombre design of the Silks gin bottle.

 

Avant Gardner

 

Avant Gardener

Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ oz. Silks Irish Dry Gin
  • 1 oz. aloe water
  • ½ oz. fresh lemon juice
  • ½ oz. chamomile honey syrup
  • ½ oz. elderflower liqueur
  • 5-6 fresh sage leaves
  • ½ oz. butterfly pea flower tea float

Preparation: Heat water to a boil. In one mug, brew 1/2 cup hot water with one bag of chamomile tea. In another mug, brew 1/2 cup hot water with 1 tablespoon dried butterfly pea flowers. Strain each after 5 minutes. Reserve and chill butterfly pea flower tea. Mix chamomile tea with 1/2 cup honey while hot, chill to serve. Using a knife and cutting board, cut a few thin slices from the midsection of a lemon and reserve for garnish. Squeeze the remaining lemon and add 1/2 oz lemon juice into a mixing tin with 5-6 of the lower leaves from a sprig of fresh sage. Then add 1/2 oz chamomile honey syrup, 1 oz aloe water (store bought is perfect), 1/2 oz elderflower liqueur, 1 1/2 oz Silks Irish Dry Gin, and ice to shake. Strain into a chilled Collins glass filled with ice and place lemon wheels down the side of the glass. Float butterfly pea flower tea on top of the cocktail and insert the reserved sprig of fresh sage directly next to the straw for garnish.

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