Ginger Garnishes: Elevate Drink Presentations With The Spice’s Flavours
Where muddling ingredients and shaking drinks with just the right amount of ice are appropriate mixology hacks to achieve a balanced cocktail, what also adds lots of artistic flair and flavour complexity to blends are the right garnishes. Ginger is one cocktail ingredient which can be used in versatile ways to become an aesthetic garnishing alternative while presenting classic and signature drinks.
A spicy and sour ingredient with a sharp and zingy flavour, ginger adds a lot of pronounced flavours into drink blends and an interesting aroma which builds a lot of fragrant, spiced notes into cocktails. Using ginger garnishes thus not only imbues taste but also brings out complex aromas while beautifying a drink’s presentation.
Read on below to know more about some of the aesthetic ginger garnishes that can be utilised to brighten drink presentations using the spice’s flavours:
Ginger Ribbon Twists
Using a vegetable peeler, make thin, long strips out of fresh ginger and twist them into little ribbons. When curled in this manner, they can be wrapped around a cocktail pick and placed horizontally on a glass. With this, the aromas of ginger will emanate from the drink even as they lend it an artistic touch. A ginger ribbon twist is an excellent garnish for blends complete with its spicy and zingy flavours such as a classic moscow mule made using 30 ml Ciroc Ultra Premium Vodka or any other premium vodka of choice.
Candied Ginger Skewers
Another sweet and spicy garnish that can be crafted using this spice is candied ginger. These are essentially small bits of ginger coated in sugar and left to dry for candying. Such a garnish can be placed on top of a cocktail so it dissolves gradually into the drink and its gingery flavours release slowly into the blend. Sweet and spicy ginger notes go well in drinks such as spiced apple punches made using 30 ml Captain Morgan Dark Rum or any other premium rum of choice as the sweet, spicy ginger and acidic and fruity apple are excellent flavour pairings in these cocktails.
Ginger Sugar Rim
One of the easiest, most flavourful and aesthetic ways to use a ginger garnish is to prepare a ginger sugar rim. Use finely grated ginger for this purpose and mix it with coarse powdered sugar and a little bit of citrus zest. This combination of sweet, spicy, tart and acidic flavours can then be used to rim glasses in a way that infuses more complexity into blends. A ginger sugar rim is an excellent garnish for cocktails like a ginger margarita crafted using 30 ml Don Julio Blanco or any other premium tequila of choice.
Ginger Ice Cubes
Another very aesthetic ginger garnish is ice cubes. Slivers of ginger can be freezed in ice cubes to make these beautiful garnishes that can adorn cocktails like a ginger infused gin and tonic prepared using 30 ml Tanqueray No. 10 Gin or any other premium gin of choice. Ginger slivers can also be paired with herbs like rosemary or basil to form a blend of earthy, spicy flavours in the ice cubes. These tasting notes are slowly absorbed by a cocktail once the ice starts to melt, lending the drink a lot of nuance.
Charred Ginger Slices
Lightly torch or pan-sear a ginger slice to caramelise the sugar compounds in it. This will release interesting aromas that can add a flavourful layer to cocktails containing identical smoky tastes. Whisky infused drinks such as an old fashioned or even a smoked ginger whisky sour can be interesting cocktail options to go with the charred ginger slice garnish. Craft such a drink using 30 ml Johnnie Walker Black Label or any other premium whisky of choice and accentuate its smoky flavours with a charred ginger slice garnish.
Drink Responsibly. This communication is for audiences above the age of 25.
