Four cocktails for Christmas

We asked Fabiano Omodeo, who for six months was the impeccable bartender on the Identità Expo S.Pellegrino terrace, to share four cocktail recipes to present during the approaching holidays. Cheers!

Christmas Spritz
Spritz has lately become one of the most popular drinks. So I decided to present one made with our ingredients: Italian, that is, and from Piedmont especially. As with this Asti Spumante, made with Moscato grapes, and one of the few to be re-fermented in bottle. I then chose to use raisins because it is the main ingredient in the Italian Christmas dessert par excellence.

5 cl Scarpa White Vermouth
2.5 cl Jgasco Elderflower (an elderberry flower juice)
2.5 cl De Miranda Asti spumante Contratto

Decoration
Crustas (edge of the glass) made with dried raisin flour

Method
Mix all the ingredients directly into the old fashion glass with lots of ice.

Zenzi Noel (non alcoholic)
I chose a drink characterised by two Christmassy colours, red and white, using rosemary as a garnish, as it recalls the Christmas tree, and candied fruit, especially ginger. 

10 cl red fruit purée
10 cl transparent apple juice
50 g fresh banana
5 cl lime juice

Decoration
A sprig of rosemary and candied ginger.

Method
Prepare a purée of red fruits (raspberries and wild strawberries) in a saucepan with a glass of water and 10 g of sugar, let the water evaporate and mix everything. The red fruit purée must colour to the inside walls of the glass. In a blender, mix the apple juice, the banana and the lime juice with two/three ice cubes. Fill a long drink glass with ice (after having the red fruits purée colour the inside walls) and pour the mixture from the blender, decorate with a sprig of rosemary, the candied ginger and a straw.

Kir Martini
This is a classic Martini cocktail sweetened with crème de cassis, which is also part of the decoration

1 cl Crème de cassis
6 cl Vodka Akdov

Decoration
Blackcurrants

Method
Colour the glass with the cassis cream letting the exceeding cassis slip by turning the glass upside down. Pour the iced vodka in the cocktail glass. Decorate with a small bunch of blackcurrants on the edge of the glass.

Dolce Natale
For this drink I decided to use some dried fruits, which are also a very important part of the Christmas menu. This is a real gastro-cocktail, which can also be served as a dessert.

4 cl Gin Mare
2 cl Lime juice
4 cl Syphoned foam of chestnuts and fresh cream
Torrone crumble
Goji berries

Decoration
Torrone crumble and gojy berries.

Method
Shake the gin with the lime juice, prepare a syphon with the mixture with 8/10 of fresh cream and 2/10 of chestnut cream, close the syphon and charge once. Pour all the shaken ingredients into the double cocktail glass, add the foam of chestnuts and cream at the top, decorate with the torrone crumble and the goji berries.