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Food

07th Mar 2017

Pure Cork: A Leeside bar has invented the ultimate rebel cocktail

Katie Mythen-Lynch

First there was the Tanora cocktail. Now a Cork mixologist has gone one step further and created a drink that is set to become the official tipple of the Rebel County.

The ‘Cork First, Ireland Second’, a tribute to one of Cork’s favourite sons, was debuted at the launch of Cork’s newest bar and eatery Cask on Mac Curtain Street.

Just like the man who inspired it, Roy Keane, it’s a prickly drink of extreme complexity. Inventor, Cask Bar Manager Andy Ferreira explains:

“… it’s got a strong character, a killer finish and shows no mercy in its relentless pursuit of perfection. The tough streets of Mayfield are at its heart! Cotton Ball Brewing Company Indian Summer is shaken with a whole passion fruit, banana liqueur, Tanqueray Gin and Blackwater Distillery Juniper Cask Gin.

“To soften it out we add of scoop of West Cork Vanilla ice cream to the mix and (‘cos it’s not quite sharp toungued enough) we also add some Aperol. It’s finished with a dash of Guelder Rose Tincture. Far from a flower, this a sour little berry with a vicious kick!”

Served in a glass milk bottle, it comes complete with red and white straws and a Roy Keane flag bearing the words ‘It’s always Cork first and Ireland second’.

Ferreira, who first hit the headlines as the creator of “The Mai Tai Baiii” (a tasty blend of pineapple infused Bacardi, Bacardi 8yr, Wray and Nephews Over Proof Rum, Cointreau, Barry’s Tea Orgeat syrup, lime, aromatic bitters, Tanora reduction and a lash of Gosling’s Black Seal Rum) says the cocktail is quickly becoming a tourist experience.

In case you missed it, here’s what the Mar Tai Baiii looked like…

Other pure Cork options on the Cask menu include the Katty Barry (gorse flower infused Bombay, woodruff, Irish pears and Prosecco) and the Farran Woods (Irish spruce infused Belvedere, nettle cordial, lime, raspberry, Angostura bitters and ginger beer).

If you’d like to sample a ‘Cork First, Ireland Second’ (and let’s be honest, who wouldn’t?), get in there quick: they change their cocktail menu every eight weeks.