We’ve reached out to some of our favorite hotel and lifestyle partners to find ways to bring a little luxury into our homes. Today, we asked Four Seasons Resort Orlando, located within the Walt Disney World Resort, to offer us a special way to take the edge off and ease into the weekend.
Nga Ly-Henschen, Capa Restaurant and Lounge General Manager from Four Seasons Orlando at Walt Disney World, shares the recipe for the Signature Capa GinTonic. Learn how to make this delicious cocktail at home during the Coronavirus Outbreak. Cheers and stay safe, fellow Pursuitists!
“The Capa GinTonic highlights Spain’s favorite pastime of getting together with friends and family to enjoy drinks and snacks. The Capa GinTonic is layered with multiple botanicals to showcase the two stars of the show: Caorunn Gin and Fever-Tree Mediterranean tonic. Our GinTonic is a showstopper when presented to guests, whether they are on vacation or having a business dinner at Capa.” –Nga Ly-Henschen, Capa Restaurant and Lounge General Manager
The Story
Spain has fallen hook, line and sinker for the gin and tonic, spawning a brand-new category of drinking-hole: the specialist gin bar. Gin tonic (as the Spanish call it) is almost never taken as an aperitif, as it is in the UK, but as a night-time bar and club drink, and even, increasingly, as an accompaniment to tapas. And the generous Spanish hand with the liquor means that you can actually taste the difference between one gin and another. Unlikely though it may sound, Spain is now the world’s biggest gin consumer per head of population, demand having grown by an average of 18 per cent year-on-year for the past five years. With the drink’s unstoppable rise comes a new seriousness about its preparation. Ordering a gin tonic is the cue for a brisk interview by the barman. The first question – and it’s a tricky one to answer – is ‘Which gin would you prefer?’ The new Spanish gin bars go out of their way to source rare and exquisite brands (many offer more than 50) from countries such as Canada, France and Finland, as well as the more conventional England and Holland. In the old days, the choice was fairly straightforward: you had Gordon’s, Tanqueray, Beefeater and Bombay Sapphire; but these days, you need to know your ‘botanicals’ – the aromatics used in gin distillation, an expanding universe starting with the standard juniper and citrus peel, and progressing to herbs, flowers and spices from the four corners of the globe.
Capa GinTonic Recipe
2oz Caorunn Gin
1 bottle Tonic (prefer Fevertree Mediterranean Tonic Water, 200 ml)
Apple, juniper, key lime, flower, sage
Directions:
Put 1 Ice sphere in Red Wine Riedel stemless glass. Add Gin. Using tweezers add garnishes (grab flowers by the pistol and rest them in the gin like a lily pad). When serving, place the glass in front of guest and pour entire contents of the tonic bottle into the glass.
Garnish:
· 1 Red Apple Slice
· 3 juniper berries
· 1 Key Lime
· 1 Raspberry
· 1 Fennel Frond
· 3 microflower marigolds
With two outdoor terraces and an elegant dining room, Four Seasons Orlando’s 17th-floor signature steakhouse serves fresh Florida seafood, Spanish-influenced tapas and expertly grilled cuts from our wood-burning grill in a romantic setting named among the Best 100 Wine Restaurants in the US by Wine Enthusiast magazine.
