The Belly Dancer is a cocktail I developed back in 2010. We were in full economic recession and so I’d just started my new cocktails at home business, the Cocktail Shaker Boys.
I first discovered Monin syrups when I tried the green apple martini using Monin green apple syrup. I started experimenting with other flavours in their range. I’ve always been attracted to working with new flavours which would help me create some fantastic new flavour combinations. So alongside wanting to work with traditional flavours such as cherry, raspberry and peach I was attracted to some of the more unusual flavours. Over time I bought lavender, rose and liquorice.
Tips on using syrups in cocktails
One of the key tips when using syrups is to use them in modest quantities in your cocktail. Otherwise the drink will turn out very sweet especially if you have also got a liqueur in it as well. I decided instinctively that rose would work well with either gin or vodka. Furthermore rose syrup working with a clear spirit such as gin or vodka will give your drink a beautiful colour. I’m already 2/3 of the way to producing a martini and so adding a vermouth such as Chamberyzette which is a lovely French strawberry vermouth seemed an obvious addition.
The belly dancer recipe
- 50 ml vodka
- 50 ml Chamberyzette
- 25 ml Monin rose syrup
This works as an attractive short martini style drink. Because it has the unusual rose flavour, it’s now an interesting take on the original slightly more 2 dimensional classic version of the martini. There are so many twists on the martini and I enjoy working with deconstructing this well regarded drink.
I recommend shaking the belly dancer cocktail vigorously with ice as it’s difficult to mix a drink containing syrup without shaking it thoroughly.
The name hopefully is fairly obvious. Rose we associate with Turkish Delight and so fitting the Turkish theme I decided to name it the Belly Dancer.
Happy mixology. What’s in your cocktail glass?