Each year, the BA Hot 10 Party celebrates the best new restaurants across the country that have been thoughtfully vetted by Bon Appétit editor at large Andrew Knowlton. For one night only, chefs from around the country are flown in so guests can taste dishes from 10 restaurants. This year’s party took place in Bushwick, Brooklyn, complete with theatrical performers from the Bushwick club, House of Yes, pop-up stalls evoking the mood (and more importantly, serving the food) of each featured restaurant, and plenty of interesting, flavorful cocktails to wash down every bite. Think: the best of the best.
As for those cocktails? Guests savored four libations by Carley Gaskin, this year’s winner of the United States Bartenders' Guild's (USBG) Most Imaginative Bartender Competition presented by BOMBAY SAPPHIRE gin: Beam Me Up, Biscotti; Geb’s Reviver; A Gift for Nichiren; and First, You Gotta Do the Truffle Shuffle. Here, Carley explains her inspiration behind each cocktail and why gin has stolen her heart.
BA: First off, what does it mean to be the USBG's Most Imaginative Bartender, and how did you claim the title?
Carley: It means years of hard work and pushing myself to new creative limits. It means being a young bartender, hearing about this competition and thinking, “Wow, I want to be that someday.” It meant staying up late to study, thinking of every possible flavor combination for each cocktail, and tasting enough Bombay Sapphire until I could pick out each individual botanical, which wasn’t so bad! The Most Imaginative Bartender Competition was what inspired me to pursue my craft all of those years ago, so to be here and to have won?! It’s indescribable.
BA: Was this your first Hot 10 party? What was the experience like for you?
Carley: It was my first Hot 10 party! Any time I’m in a room filled with food and cocktails, I’m certainly happy! It was great being able to taste dishes from the top 10 best new restaurants in America and work with the chefs to create cocktail pairings.
BA: What do you like about creating cocktails with gin?
Carley: Gin is one of the most complex and versatile categories of spirit. You can have so many different flavors and aromas from each gin. My favorite thing about Bombay Sapphire Gin is that it is made using only 10 botanicals—including lemon peel from Spain, juniper berries from Italy, and liquorice from China, to name a few—and you can pick out each one when sipping it.
BA: So let’s talk about these cocktails. How did you develop each one?
BEAM ME UP, BISCOTTI
Ingredients: Bombay Sapphire Gin, coffee-infused sherry trinity, orgeat, amaro, and vanilla bitters
Carley: I wanted to create something that was delicious and would give guests a little boost before and while tasting their way through 10 dishes of food. This drink was paired with chicken liver and persimmon tartlets by Nonesuch in Oklahoma City, Bon Appétit’s #1 best new restaurant, which got guests off to a great start. Beam Me Up, Biscotti combines two of my favorite things: gin and a cup of coffee with a biscotti.
GEB’S REVIVER
Ingredients: Bombay Sapphire Gin, pineapple and lemon oleo saccharum, pineapple and carrot foam, garnished with rhubarb and carrot dust
Carley: Geb’s Reviver was the cocktail I presented that got me to the finals for the Most Imaginative Bartender Competition. It is a zero-waste cocktail, which means that each ingredient is used in its entirety and plays perfectly with the botanicals found in Bombay Sapphire.
A GIFT FOR NICHIREN
Ingredients: Bombay Sapphire Gin, blended edamame syrup, fennel liqueur, cucumber sake, lemon juice, and saline
Carley: A Gift for Nichiren was created to pair with the seared daikon with egg yolk sauce from Nonesuch. I wanted to create something light, refreshing, and citrus forward to cut through the richness of egg yolk, yet play off the flavors of the seared daikon.
FIRST, YOU GOTTA DO THE TRUFFLE SHUFFLE
Ingredients: Bombay Sapphire Gin, spiced pear liqueur, Martini & Rossi® Ambrato Vermouth, lemon, and truffle oil
Carley: This cocktail is simple, and by far my favorite of the cocktails created for this event. I wanted to make something that was approachable, with a little dash of weird…like me! I played off of the umami flavors of the beef udon from Yume Ga Arukara, the #8 best new restaurant out of Cambridge, MA, and threw in one of my favorite flavor pairings: pears and truffles.
Feeling inspired to craft a few beverages of your own? Get started here.
BE BRILLIANT AND INSPIRED. DRINK RESPONSIBLY!
© 2018. BOMBAY SAPPHIRE AND ITS TRADE DRESS ARE TRADEMARKS. IMPORTED BY THE BOMBAY SPIRITS COMPANY U.S.A., CORAL GABLES, FL. GIN – 47% ALC. BY VOL.