A cocktail from the ancient seas
As the frosty fingers of winter spread their tentacles across our world, we find ourselves yearning for the embrace of warmth.
And where better to seek refuge than in the age-old tradition of hot cocktails, those beacons of comfort in the cold?
Welcome to Aditya’s bar. Tonight, we delve into a tale steeped in maritime lore, a concoction born from the frigid seas and the ingenuity of ancient seafarers. The Loggerhead – a drink not merely made, but forged in the crucible of history.
The Loggerhead – Ingredients
- To put together The Loggerhead, here’s all that you’ll need
- Tales of distant shores in the form of dark rum – 45ml
- Sweet brown sugar crystals holding echoes of the earth – 1tbsp
- The essence of exotic botanicals from Angostura Bitters – One dash
- Representation of the zest for life from a curl of lemon peel – One curl
- And the lifeblood of all potions- Hot water
But what’s with the name?
But what, you may ask, gives the drink its name?
It is the loggerhead. A long, iron rod, crowned with a metal bulb, which when heated, was used by sailors to make frozen materials pliant.
Although today, owing to rarity and impracticality, we will substitute it with a common metal spoon.
Making it
Now, it’s time to embark on today’s adventure in alchemy.
- Begin by pouring the rum into your glass.
- Add the sugar, the bitters, and stir, mingling the elements as sailors once did under storm-swept skies.
- Heat then your metal spoon in a flame until it glows to the colour of fiery sunset. Which done, plunge it into your glass, and watch as the concoction sizzles and dances. Your own tempest in a teacup.
- As the brew settles, gently pour in hot water, stirring slowly. And if you wish, cast in a couple of cloves, little treasures that add in another layer of mystery.
- Remove the spoon and you have ready, The Loggerhead, a drink not just served, but performed.
A sip of this concoction takes you on a voyage – where the tang of lemon battles the caramel sweetness of sugar, the rum’s warmth clashes with the bitters’ intrigue.
And remember, the loggerhead was not just a tool. In the hands of an inebriated sailor, it could rewrite the terrain of a man’s face.
And much as names remain much as bodies won’t, the phrase “being at loggerheads” remains a part of our lexicon, while the tool and the cocktail have been relegated to obscure history.
Enjoy your glass full of history!