What inspired you to become a bar tender?

I started as a bartender when I turned 18 – I had always had an interest in food and drink from a young age – my family is very food orientated. I began training as a chef but missed the interaction with the people I was creating for. When I cooked for people at home I would not only consider my ingredients, I would tailor it towards what I knew of the person and their preferences. The bar allows this bespoke service – you can consider the weather, time of day, and any other external factors and fit these towards the guests’ tastes and requirements.

What inspires you to created fresh new ideas for cocktails?

I think my attitude towards food has influenced my ingredient choice, but inspiration can come from anywhere – often discussions with my sister yield some more left field ideas, but can also come from an experience, a meal, peers and a myriad of other sources.

What do you like about working with Chilean blueberries?

Chilean blueberries are a fantastic cocktail ingredient. Not only do they have an incredible flavour that cannot be recreated, they add amazing visual appeal and a very desirable texture.

Why have you used gin for both these cocktails?

Chilean Blueberries, showcasing the real characteristics that the fresh fruit has. They have a real balance of not only the top floral notes but also that earthiness underneath. They’re both gin based cocktails, to get that really strong juniper presence that works with the blueberries.

Why do people use bitters so much in cocktails?

With blueberries for example, bitters lifts those top notes out and a couple of dashes helps bring all the flavours together. This of it as seasoning for your cocktails!

Do you need to muddle blueberries in cocktails?

Not usually and I haven’t for these two cocktails. Shaking, the blueberries with ice quite hard, will break up the skins and release that lovely colour and the flavours.

Why do you use egg white in the Chilean Wisdom cocktail?

Chilean Wisdom does use some slightly unusual ingredients. The reason we use egg white is that it gives a lovely texture to the drink, and helps ‘hold’ some of those flavours on the tongue a bit longer so you’ll have all the flavours lifting out. While the blueberries are in season, all of the other flavours will just marry together, so you’ll taste everything together without anything dominating over each other.