The Goldfinger 007, a vivid blue gin-based concoction by Blowfish barman Nishan Nepulangoda, won a Toronto-wide drinks competition this week.
BLOWFISH 668 King St. W., Toronto 416-860-0606 www.blowfishrestaurant.com
Blowfish has been a mainstay of the King West scene since 2003, when it opened in an old bank building at the corner of King and Bathurst.
Its sexy hot-pink decor is a major draw, as is the innovative sushi menu serving up parasol-like ebi rolls in mini shot glasses lined up on the backlit marble bar.
Sake is the main drink here: Blowfish offers a choice of 10 different sweet and sour saketinis, which balance the flavours in the food.
But it was the other side of the drinks menu - the one teeming with contemporary cocktail creations - that grabbed all the attention this week.
On Monday, resident barman Nishan Nepulangoda took first prize in a city-wide mixology competition held at the Drake Hotel.
The award tops a long list of honours that the 35-year old Sri Lanka native has won since immigrating to Canada six years ago.
This time around, Nepulangoda won for one of his newest inventions: Goldfinger 007, a vivid blue gin-based drink crowned with lemon-lime cotton candy and dusted with flecks of actual 24-karat gold.
"I wanted to create the best of the best," says the barman, who is as personable as he is passionate about what he calls his life's calling. "That's why I thought to make it gold."
Goldfinger 007
Ingredients
2 ounces Tanqueray gin
3 ounces fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce simple syrup infused with Thai chili and black pepper
1/2 ounce lime cordial infused with thyme, lemongrass and lemon peels
1 teaspoon Blue Curaçao
Bitters to taste
Lemon drop Tabasco foam (see recipe below)
Rimmer:
Sugar, lime juice, minced thyme, minced ginger, minced mint
Garnish:
Lemon-lime cotton candy
Edible gold flakes
Method
The lemon drop Tabasco foam should be created a day in advance. To make it, combine 6 ounces lemon drop syrup with 6 ounces fresh lime juice in a pot and bring to a boil. Add 6 grams of gelatin powder and stir, then take the pot off the stove to allow mixture to settle. Once cool, fold in stiffened egg whites and transfer to a whipping cream canister. Refrigerate at least 8 hours before use.
To make the drink, fill a shaker a quarter of the way up with ice. Add gin, lime juice, infused lime cordial, infused simple syrup and Blue Curaçao.
Shake vigorously and pour into a tall, slender glass rimmed with lime juice, sugar and the minced herbs. Add bitters to taste.
Add the foam and top with a pinch of lime-lemon cotton candy. Sprinkle with edible 24-karat gold.