Aqua Shard (London) – The Bar

The View

So I am at the bar which is meant to be the ‘place to be” in London. Its got views, cool cocktails and the crowd is very look at moi! I waltz in just as lunch hour is about to kick-off and find a seat next window with a lovely view over the whole of ole’ London town!

In a city where service can be super patchy, I am blessed with a really lovely waitress who has my kinda charm, a bubbly personality (and yes, she is beautiful). Don’t get too excited…it doesn’t go down the James Bond – shaken not stirred kinda cocktail ordering experience, but I do find her charm to be the perfect tonic for the winter chill that grips the London air.

She takes her time to walk through the menu and unfortunately the bar snacks are sparse, so I can only order some peanuts. Here are my choice of drinks for the night.

Smoking Stars

Tanquery 10 Gin, Star Anise Syrup, Lemon Juice, Peychaud’s Bitters, Absinthe Bitters and Egg White

The beautiful botanical notes of the gin, the little zest of the lemon, sweet spice of the star anise intermingled with the bite of the bitters and soft fluffiness of the egg white foam makes for a well crafted cocktail. It is a purely heavenly experience. I just loved it. There is moment where the Absinthe and Tanquery grip you as you cast an idyllic gaze across the beautiful city of London and you realise there is so much history and beauty in a country that bequeathed most of the world with its parliamentary institutions and judicial systems. It makes me that much fonder of this beautiful city. As they say in life Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder!

The waitress steps in to rescue my longing palate and provides me with the menu to choose another cocktail. She advises me that my next choice should be the:

Sweet Clouds

Cîroc Vodka infused with Ginger, Rubin’s chocolate vermouth, Orgeat, Lime, Balsamic Vinegar, Vanilla Bitters and Egg White

This drink is a pure dream. I would say it is one of the best cocktails I have ever tasted. There is fusion of the sweetness of the chocolate and vanilla, which dances with the citrus in the drink which then makes way for the nutty and floral notes inherent in the mix, which then makes way in a rather slow and subtle fashion for the bite of the ginger and the tangy balsamic vinegar. It doesn’t interrupt the drink, but is integrated such that the variety of flavours flow and intermingle effortless without care nor worry to deliver a truly sensuous and engaging cocktail experience.

I seem insistent on sticking with my previous cocktail, but the waitress (who has mastered the art of influencing) sways me to pick her favourite drink… the cappuccino martini.

Cappuccino Martini

Ketel One Vodka, Kahlua, Coffee, Chocolate and Cinnamon Foam

The drink threatens to walk down the well trodden path of the usual espresso martini “with an espresso hit and some vodka” for those who love their poison, however there are touches to this cocktail that do excite the palate. There is a good hint of chocolate which melds into the drink very well, the cinnamon foam adds a lovely sweet spice to the drink and the foam itself is sufficient to stay with the drink to end to make a wonderful textural impression with each sip.

Bathroom

I do pay a visit to the bathroom as the view there is meant to be amazing and well it certainly is….