Imaginative Sapphires

The finalists for the Bombay Sapphire World’s Most Imaginative Bartender 2013

Combining Sapphires and cocktails in an imaginative way is exactly the sort of story we like to hear.

So when we heard that Bombay Sapphire has crowned Italian, Matteo Vanzi, the World’s Most Imaginative Bartender 2013, we couldn’t resist sharing his winning recipe with you.

Chosen from 11 finalists from around the world, Vanzi said that his cocktail had been inspired by the Italian countryside of Tuscany, where the finals had been held.  The details of his ‘Perfect Lady’ are below.

The Pastorini (Perfect Lady) – Matteo Vanzi’s Winning Cocktail Recipe 

Overall recipe ingredients

50ml Bombay Sapphire gin

10ml St Germain infused jasmine green tea and pink grapefruit peel

15ml Martini Bianco

20ml White Balsamic Vinegar with verbena and camomile

Homemade shrub

1tsp juniper berry meringue

Overall method

Combine all ingreidents in a cocktail shaker

Shake, fine strain and serve in metal picnic mugs

Homemade shrub

1 cup caster sugar

1 cup white balsamic vinger

Method for homemade shrub

Heat vinger and allow sugar to disolve and then filter

Infusion

375ml St Germain

3 tbs Jasmine green tea

Peel of one Pink grapefruit

To make the infusion

In a Vienna coffee machine lightly infuse the green tea and pink grapefruit peel with the St Germain

Juniper Berry meringue   

125g egg white

125g caster sugar

5 whole fine gounded juniper berries

Method for meringue

Whisk to mergine