Sarah Berardi, Hendrick’s Gin UK Brand Ambassador has teamed up with Dave Miller of Glasgow’s vibrant Five March to create a special serve using Hendrick’s Neptunia gin. Guaranteed to warm up your cocktail list this spring and summer.
BRAND AMBASSADOR: SARAH BERARDI
Which spirit have you chosen to use and why?
We have chosen Hendrick’s Neptunia! This is our newest limited release Gin from our Cabinet of Curiosities. Our master distiller Ms Lesley Gracie has captured the magic of the sea and expressed it in a gin. It is Hendrick’s Original plus locally sourced coastal botanicals, citrus, and a hint of a distant sea breeze. Its divine!
What cocktail have you made?
This cocktail is Hendrick’s Neptunia, Shiso Vinegar, Dulse, and Soda. It is such a brilliant serve.
What benefits do you think this cocktail will bring to bars offering it?
It is such a brilliant lower abv cocktail. It’s incredibly refreshing and works so well in the spring/summer season. I instantly want to have one on the patio at Five March.
What drinks trends do you expect to see going forward? How important is it to offer seasonal serves and cocktails?
Seasonal cocktails are so important. Especially when working with food. What Five March does so brilliantly is they have curated cocktails that work really well with their seasonal menu. Five March did this wonderfully at our Neptunia Launch at the Hendrick’s Gin Palace.
BARTENDER: DAVE MILLER, FIVE MARCH
What’s your thoughts on the seasonal serve you have both created?
It’s light, fresh, and accessible. We managed to let the Hendrick’s Neptunia Gin speak in the final drink to showcase the product, while using a seasonal fruit shrub and some fizz to create something that is interesting enough to satisfy the industry professionals at the event we created it for, as well as being accessible enough for our guests to enjoy.
Why have you chosen this serve? Why do you think it works so well with the chosen base spirit?
The serve was originally created as the welcome drink for the launch event of Hendrick’s Neptunia, and as such, we decided to go for a spritz style drink. Neptunia has a lovely minerality to it, meaning it was well suited to pairing with sparkling wine, and we rounded the drink out with a pear shrub made with some cider vinegar and just a touch of rose liqueur (staying in line with the heritage of the product) to impart brightness and smooth out the serve into something interesting and quaffable.
What do you think this cocktail will add to your bar’s offer?
It’s a great drink for us as it highlights a few of the things we like at Five March: a great product with a great story, seasonal produce treated in a careful and considered way, all put together in a balanced, interesting, and accessible package.
How will you promote this serve?
The majority of our guests come to us as they are keen to try new things and have trust that we will deliver these in a delicious and interesting way. Allowing our team to be passionate about the things we serve, as well as the fact that many guests are keen to learn about the new Hendrick’s product means that it’s an easy sell. Looks great on Instagram too.
How important is it for your bar to offer seasonal serves?
Can’t be overstated how important seasonality is to us. We always want to be developing and improving our offer and giving our guests a reason to come back and see us. Seasonality provides one of the best and easiest ways to do this.
How important are cocktails to your business?
I’d like to think that cocktails represent a hugely important part of the experience we look to provide at Five March. We have a really talented team here, and the energy and creativity both front and back of house mean that we are able to deliver a quite complete experience for our guests across both food and drink offerings.
What drinks trends do you expect to see going forward?
I think we will continue to see a move towards our guests taking a keen interest in the seasonality, provenance, and sustainability of our offer. The baseline knowledge of our guests, regarding the drinks industry, is also always rising higher and higher, and this means that constant development and creativity is a must from us.
