Mixology with Rui Principe at Blue Bar! Super interesting evening!
When I had got this invite from Blue Bar for a mixology session, they had me at cocktails and that too with Rui Principe, a well know name in the world of Mixology. To top it all there seemed to be excellent company with the CAL bloggers table people. It sure had all signs of being a promising evening. The evening started with Rui promising us that he will get us all drunk and me getting drunk is a task. Something that happens very very very rarely but I really hadn’t expected what he had planned for us and brushed his challenge aside. I shouldn’t have, I really shouldn’t have 🙂
Rui Principe
Rui was so warm and friendly and kept sharing his fundas of mixology throughout the evening and at one point he even shocked us by saying he doesn’t really drink cocktails. He is more of a wine person but loves to create cocktails for people.
I reached a bit late for the event and the people had already started with “Love Me or Leave Me” and were really going bonkers over how nice and fresh it was and when I got mine I understood what they meant. The drink had a wonderful blend of English Cucumber, Fresh Coriander and Gin. Tt was really refreshing and what I loved about it was the fact that how I could taste every ingredient and yet there wasn’t any one single over powering ingredient. The drink was fresh just perfect for Bangalore weather. The drink also had a little egg white in it and Rui explained that it helps stabilize the drink, even the drink full to the brim wasn’t spilling and he attributed it to egg white. For me, the egg white added a certain richness and smoothness to the drink that I loved.
The next drink was “Jack the Pirate”, which had Captain Morgan spiced, pineapple juice and green cardamom concoction. It was topped with a cube of grilled pineapple coated in all-spice; a unique drink surely whether I really liked it or not I can’t decide since I neither like cardamom much nor pineapple but still I did not hate this drink was for sure.
Oh in case you think we were only drinking we were eating too, there was a constant supply of yummy food from Blue Ginger which kept as busy while when we weren’t focusing on talking to Rui.
The next drink was the “The Bebbo Cocktail” and before you think it had something to do with Kareena let me assure you it doesn’t.
Tanqueray Gin, Honey, Orange and lime juices this was a sunny yet a potent drink, garnished with a single cherry in the bottom it reminded me of a setting sun and the high it brings along.
Remember people, we are three drinks down and going strong right now and yeah did I tell you Rui had a rule that you can’t leave the drinks unfinished, I really do like that rule. The next drink that came in was a vodka based drink and vodka is really my drink of choice mostly.
Its called “Ginger Vodka Crusta” – vodka, muddled ginger, fresh vanilla sugar syrup, lime juice this was a drink which featured a sugar rim and the center of attraction long rings of orange peel swirled in the glass, the peels that had been shown a bit of blow torch heat to bring the flavors out completely. This one was a looker again and one of my favorite of the evening (no I think my fav drink was the first one).
The last drink of the evening and the one that got me a little tipsy was the one made with whiskey, though the combination of whiskey and tea did tone the whiskey a lot but still not enough for me to totally enjoy the drink. “Sou Pety Martini” – Assam Tea, Johnnie Walker Double Black and Rosemary Sugar Syrup.
And after all these drinks, Rui told us we are gonna be making some drinks together and guess who was silly enough to volunteer, but of course yours truly. We made cosmopolitan and though it’s a drink I have made before at home too, it was good to learn it from an expert first hand (thanks Gaurav for the pics)!
And the second set of volunteers made Sangria which was very different than any sangria I have ever tasted or made, it was instant one, it had ice second, it was fun to make and it did taste good.
And Rui did stand upto his promise at the end of the evening each one of us were drunk and happy. I, for one, I am surely going back to taste some of the drinks that he has designed for Blue Bar sometime soon.
Location-In the gardens, next to the blue Ginger, Taj Westend.
Hours- 4 pm to 11:30 pm.
Reservations: Recommended.
Price-550 ++ (per drink)
Wow! what a big array of innovated drinks :))
Hmmm.. now me is thinking I should have come to this one