Proof Syrup Botanicals: FirstTaste
Perfect cocktails start with Proof Syrups!!!
We are the first to admit that basil and rosemary are not scents or flavors we think of when we think about what kind of botanicals are associated with cocktails. Mint, ginger…sure! But hibiscus? Lavender? Uh, no.
However, we were pleasantly surprised when we tried our hands at making cocktails using Proof’s line of Botanical Cocktail Syrups. Hibiscus? Lavender? Hell yes!
Proof Botanical Syrups
Proof has five flavors in their botanical line:
Each bottle of syrups makes about 16 drinks. Pick, measure, mix, and drink…yeah, pretty much foolproof 🙂
So pretty, so smelly (in a good way)
The main idea behind Proof Syrup is that you don’t need a degree in mixology to make awesome cocktails, just liquor, ice, and Proof Syrup syrups. That will make you make a perfect drink every time.
Talk about gin-o to gin-o!
FirstTaste
To test out Proof’s approach to making simple, easy, perfect cocktails, we enlisted a few surprisingly willing participants (ahem). As with all of our RainyDayEvents, we had plenty of food on hand. We also decided that because the line of syrups are botanical, the liquor of choice for the event would be gin only.
Old enough to “Live long and prosper,” young enough to still ambulate under their own power.
For the gin, we chose a known quantity as the control…Tanqueray. The “experimental” selection was the gin from GlenPharma. We introduced GlenPharma‘s “GlenQuila” at “Mix-Your-Own-Margarita-Nite” and thought we would do the same for their gin.
We know we said “botanical night” but the vase of flowers are JUST flowers! NOT an ingredient!
We gave the crew no instructions other than printed versions of the cocktail recipes on the back of the Proof bottles. The evening evolved organically, and like many others, end with result we didn’t expect.
Oo, THOSE look interesting…
Many cocktails were made: some were tasty, some needed tweaking. We found many of the gin-and-syrup only versions tasted MUCH better with the addition of soda water or tonic. The best basic ratio settled at around 2 parts gin, 1 part syrup, and 4 parts soda/tonic water.
“I’ve got mine, and am a very happy person that I do.”
Here are the final results of our completely unscientific poll, based completely on how much was left in each bottle:
- Clear favorite – Basil (Basil!)
- Tied for second – Hibiscus and Lavender
- Best as a Gin & Tonic – Rosemary
Do NOT try to determine how much gin is left in either bottle, just don’t.
We encourage you our RainyDayMagazine readers to conduct your own completely unscientific Proof Syrup crazy-@ss-gin-party taste test event and let us know whether your results matches up with ours.
Whatever the outcome, we are pretty sure you will have a great time enjoying your cocktails rather than spending all your time making them 🙂
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