LCBO Food & Drink Autumn 2023

NEXT-GEN COCKTAILS

Simple Spheres Although the “spherification” of food and drink in modernist cuisine has produced spheres of all sizes, from “pearls” to “ravioli” and even much larger “eggs,” so-called cocktail caviar is a rising-star ingredient because, in the bartending world, everyone’s talking about tex ture. Sometimes compared to Pop Rocks candy, cocktail caviar is a relatively easy way to add both a burst of contrasting flavour and a novel textural dimension to an ordinary mixed drink like a Highball.

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Spheres made with this basic spherification method don’t have a long life and should be served within 30 min utes after they’re made, so prepare all the solutions in advance and make the caviar last.

ASK AN EXPERT Hamilton bartender Alyssa Luckhurst, who trained in modernist techniques for three years at Toronto’s BarChef and Vela, says that the time is right for cocktail caviar to take centre stage because we’re finally really acknowledging that the appearance of the cocktail is an important part of the experience. “I mean obviously there’s that saying about how we ‘eat with our eyes,’” Luckhurst says. “Cocktail caviar isn’t all about looks though; people love it because it’s adventurous, surprising and fun, almost like a grown-up Jell-O shot.”

138 FOOD & DRINK AUTUMN 2023