Chromatographic Drinks
Nov. 12th, 2010 02:58 pmSo.
Last Wednesday I returned, unsatisfied from yum cha, not wanting to study, and feeling like a drink. Being a burgeoning alcoholic, I made one. It was hot, so I decided to use crushed ice.
I wanted to make a slurry of sorts, so I crushed ice in my blender (I think it may be a food processor?) and then put it into a glass.
OBLIGATORY FOODBLOG PICTURE:

I then got some rum, lime juice/ zest and brown sugar and poured it over it.
HERE'S THE RESULT:

While drinking it, I noticed that some of the solid lime zest was being deposited on the ice at the top. I realised that if I could get the ice crystal size right, I would be able to do some kind of awesome drink chromatography. (Chromatography is a method of separation. Look it up!)
The idea is that the ice kind of acts as a filter, catching any solid thing. Meanwhile, the liquid trickles through the ice, cooled and clean of solids. (You drink it with a straw, from the bottom of the glass where the liquid forms a bit of a reservoir.)
A simple application of this would be to make cocktails without the need of a cocktail shaker. (You mix the ingredients separately then just pour it over the ice. Any solids stay in the ice and the drink is cooled.)
A more advanced application would be to make some crazy drink that tasted different depending on where you tasted it...
SOME IDEAS:
Last Wednesday I returned, unsatisfied from yum cha, not wanting to study, and feeling like a drink. Being a burgeoning alcoholic, I made one. It was hot, so I decided to use crushed ice.
I wanted to make a slurry of sorts, so I crushed ice in my blender (I think it may be a food processor?) and then put it into a glass.
OBLIGATORY FOODBLOG PICTURE:

I then got some rum, lime juice/ zest and brown sugar and poured it over it.
HERE'S THE RESULT:

While drinking it, I noticed that some of the solid lime zest was being deposited on the ice at the top. I realised that if I could get the ice crystal size right, I would be able to do some kind of awesome drink chromatography. (Chromatography is a method of separation. Look it up!)
The idea is that the ice kind of acts as a filter, catching any solid thing. Meanwhile, the liquid trickles through the ice, cooled and clean of solids. (You drink it with a straw, from the bottom of the glass where the liquid forms a bit of a reservoir.)
A simple application of this would be to make cocktails without the need of a cocktail shaker. (You mix the ingredients separately then just pour it over the ice. Any solids stay in the ice and the drink is cooled.)
A more advanced application would be to make some crazy drink that tasted different depending on where you tasted it...
SOME IDEAS:
- Some form of paprika and lime cocktail. This is basically because a friend misheard a song and probably would not make a great cocktail.
- Using brown sugar with a high proof alcohol. The alcohol could turn the sugar white while taking the brown from it. Not sure whether this would be desirable in a cocktail...