Getting the right mix

Last summer Bibby Scientific announced a rather tasty partnership with pioneering alcoholic beverage manufacturer Aske Stephenson. We caught up with mixologist Thomas Aske to get behind the science of the perfect cocktail...

So cocktails and science, do they make for a good mix…if you’ll excuse the pun? In mixing different liquids there is always an element of science involved, even if we aren’t aware of it. For example, it could be analysing the molecular composition of the liquids or controlling how the flavours integrate to viscosity. Now that bartenders are beginning to take more of an interest in how this works, we are seeing them in turn becoming more experimental in mixing cocktails.

[caption id="attachment_52345" align="alignnone" width="450"] Aske Stephenson produce cocktails with new and unusual flavour combinations[/caption]

Tell us about what equipment you use, and how that helps for the perfect libation. The main equipment we use are the rotary evaporator and sous vide water baths. Primarily, we use them to extract delicate flavours from a variety of ingredients and impart them into liquids, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. The beauty of the rotovap is its ability to operate at low temperatures, ensuring that the natural flavours of the ingredients shine through.

Chefs seem to have got on the ‘science bus’ a lot lately…now mixologists, is this just a fad or a genuinely new way to mix drinks? I believe that when it comes to flavour, boundaries can only be pushed further. Once the consumers begin to experience unusual flavour combinations and experimental preparatory techniques, standard classic drinks - whilst good - can lose their lustre.

Have Bibby been a useful resource? Bibby have been exceptional. The main benefit for us is that Bibby fully understand our business and what we want to achieve which means that we can grow together.

It would be amiss of us not to ask…what is your favourite cocktail of all time? It really does depend on a number of factors including time of day, locality and mood but right now as I type this I would say an Old Fashioned.

The brainchild of Thomas Aske and Tristan Stephenson, Aske Stephenson have been using benchtop laboratory instruments from Bibby (such as the Stuart RE300 Rotary Evaporator) to produce innovative pre-bottled cocktails.