Martina in the 'JAR

DIAGEO MOET HENNESSY treated Bangkok’s tipplers last month to a cocktail extravaganza, inviting one of London’s highest flying bartenders to Hyde & Seek Peek-a-Boo at Groove, CentralWorld to demonstrate her flair for both the shaken and stirred.
Currently based at London’s New Orleans-style speakeasy Nightjar, voted Drinks International’s second and third best bar in the world in 2013 and 2015 respectively, Martina Breznanova is best known for her emotional and quirky mixology, attention to detail and daring recipes. Breznanova is a globe-trotting bartender who has conducted a series of brand seminars and bar show presentations across the world.
“Being a female bartender doesn’t make any difference in London. There’s a lot of us there,” she says with a grin.
For the Bangkok presentation, Breznanova brought along her own spices and other ingredients to create four aromatic signature cocktails – Atol Sour, Lavina, Tea Cobbler and Soul Kiss, the first three her own creations and the latter a classic Prohibition-era tipple.
Atol Sour is a gin-based cocktail with a lovely warming kick from umeshu and Benedictine and mixed with grapefruit, lemon juice, bee pollen syrup, egg white and pomelo bitters.
“In London, anything sour comes with egg whites that essentially give the drink its texture,” Breznanova says.
With its vodka base that’s offset by a refreshing concoction of custard apple pure, lime, Agave syrup and chocolate liqueur, Lavina should appeal to the ladies. “We use local tropical fruits in the mix. The result is a drink that’s simple and tasty. Sometimes people don’t want complicated flavours,” she adds.
Soul Kiss displays a subtle smoke from Johnnie Walker Gold Label Reserve in a complex blend of aromas from Zacapa, NJ bitters, house-made grenadine and lemon.
“The drink dates back to the Prohibition era. It’s quite strong and a little smoky. It has a very sweet and citrusy nose thanks to the sweet spices and chilli syrup used.
Tea Cobbler is a spicy mix of Tanqueray gin, Ron Zacapa, guava jam, lime, Earl Grey tea liqueur and Pennyroyal Tea syrup. ]
“Guava is a favourite fruit in Thailand, and the jam is home-made. It used to be rum-based, but this version is gin-based with Earl Grey tea liqueur that is a fine blend of black tea and bergamot. The bergamot flavour comes right to the fore,” the bartender says.
All four cocktails reflect Breznanova’s love of travelling and her penchant for using only the freshest ingredients. Nightjar is best known for its Prohibition-period drinks and Breznanova’s innovative creations along with live New Orleans jazz.
“My cocktails were inspired by places I’ve visited. They also display different ingredients from different places. I like to create cocktails with new ingredients that I’ve never used. I drew a lot of inspiration from London too. The city is a melting pot of cultures, and it has a market, or a shop for each ethnic group, from Caribbean to Turkish and Asian. And I take delight in using various ingredients from these sources,” she says.
A good cocktail, she stresses, is a matter of personal taste. “I always ask my customers before I make a drink about their favourite flavours and ingredients. With their answers, I can create the best cocktail to suit their preferences,” |she says.