AUATC – Quarantini Social Dry Gin

Well, in difficult times like these, it is essential to keep your spirit up – no pun intended. This is why I am again writing about the Quarantini Social Dry Gin. Luckily I had a second bottle on hand, because we finished the first bottle during the first lockdown. Again, I stuck with a rather unpronounceable name, because Bon Iver also published another song with the title “Ate Up All Their Cake”. So, what better way to incorporate the title into the drink as with a milk punch.

At the risk of repeating myself, the Quarantini Social Dry Gin is a project by Boris Markić from Tesla Slivo and Felix Kaltenthaler from Revolte Rum. At least 5 € per bottle are donated to the gastronomy sector. You can even select a bar of your choice. I chose the Schwarzes Schaf and the Kawenzmann Bar from Bamberg the last time. So, when Boris asked me if I could feature the Quarantini Social Dry Gin again, because of the current situation, I did not hesitate. On top of that, selling bottled cocktails might just be a way of creating at least some kind of revenue for bars.

First, a milk punch

Originally, I planned to make a Negroni variation combining the Quarantini Gin with the Mondino Stagionato and the Cap Corse Blanc. However, the title “Ate Up All Their Cake” gave me the idea to turn the drink into a milk punch. A based the recipe loosely on the Argyle Punch from bartender Sascha Geiersberg, Le Lion, Hamburg. Of course, it is worth making more than one drink at a time. Apart from that, is crucial to pour the drink in the whole milk. The resting of the drink / milk mixture however, is not that important. I would opt for something between 30 minutes to one hour. Afterwards, the mixture can be filtered through a coffee filter. It might be a good idea to wash the filter first to get rid of a “paper” taste. For me the best way is filtering twice through the same coffee filter.

The resulting drink clearly reminded me of an FruchtZwerg fruit yogurt for children. It is relatively sweet, but at the same time very smooth and complex. The drink can use quite some melting water. The papaya note of the Quarantini Gin also shines through in the finished drink.

Second, sour apple juice

The Schwarzes Schaf in Bamberg also went another way for their bottled cocktails. For their Kentucky Orange they use apple juice with added malic acid. Around 30 g per litre acid is added to cloudy apple juice. This gives the drink a similar acidity level as citrus juice, but at the same time it keeps longer. Besides that, the Kentucky Orange is a great cocktail and you should definitely grab a bottle of it if you get the chance to. If you mix the drink yourself, you can decide if you want to drink it straight away with the soda water added after stirring on ice, or if you bottle it with or without the soda water.