If you’ve been following FoodGoblin at all over the last six months you’ll know well my new found love of all things tequila and mezcal. This obsession was born by attending the first UK Tequila and Mezcal Festival in November and, in short, doing a whole lot of drinking.
I’m now learning to experiment with these newly appreciated spirits by making them into cocktails and even, dare I say, doing a bit of cookery with them. Recently I was also introduced to a new aid in enhancing my forays into tequila, in the form of the UK’s first tequila and flavoured salt initiative, led by World of Zing in partnership with renowned tequila brand, Ocho. I headed down to the salts’ launch party at Covent Garden tequila bar, El Nivel, to learn more.
Now…we’ve all tried the classic margarita cocktail, rimmed with table salt and garnished with lime. Lovely, all well and good but World of Zing founder, Pritesh Mody, wondered if there was more that could be done here. Pritesh developed a range of 10 flavoured salts made from La Baleine Sea Salt including Hibiscus, Mexican Cactus, Coconut & Lime and an Applewood Smoked variety. Coaching us through the salts, he spoke on how the idea is for customers to personalise their margaritas by choosing the flavour of their salt rim! Neat, hey? Aptly timed too: salt in cocktails is becoming a recognised trend and you’re even seeing bar tenders doing fully savoury cocktails.
I’m now learning to experiment with these newly appreciated spirits by making them into cocktails and even, dare I say, doing a bit of cookery with them. Recently I was also introduced to a new aid in enhancing my forays into tequila, in the form of the UK’s first tequila and flavoured salt initiative, led by World of Zing in partnership with renowned tequila brand, Ocho. I headed down to the salts’ launch party at Covent Garden tequila bar, El Nivel, to learn more.
Now…we’ve all tried the classic margarita cocktail, rimmed with table salt and garnished with lime. Lovely, all well and good but World of Zing founder, Pritesh Mody, wondered if there was more that could be done here. Pritesh developed a range of 10 flavoured salts made from La Baleine Sea Salt including Hibiscus, Mexican Cactus, Coconut & Lime and an Applewood Smoked variety. Coaching us through the salts, he spoke on how the idea is for customers to personalise their margaritas by choosing the flavour of their salt rim! Neat, hey? Aptly timed too: salt in cocktails is becoming a recognised trend and you’re even seeing bar tenders doing fully savoury cocktails.
I tried the full range. Of course that meant that 10 margaritas had to be consumed but…of course, being the abject professional I am, I soldiered on through. A tough gig. The citrus salt kicked things off well; surprisingly fresh and not overpowered by the salt, which is relatively thick ground which might come as a surprise to some! I love good quality salt, and you’ll not infrequently catch me nibbling on flakes of fleur de sel in my kitchen at home, so this didn’t bother me.
The Hibiscus and Rose came next – I rimmed a glass half and half with both! These were probably my least favourite of the range. I love rose and felt it could have come through more. Similar with the Hibiscus, although the rich pink colour is super vibrant and looked a treat on the glass. The Mexican Chilli Cactus was great. Chilli works well with lime and tequila – I make a sorbet with those flavours – so it was good to see this match included in World of Zing’s rostra. My absolute favourite of the night however came with the Applewood Smoked. Some might call me unsubtle but this rim packed a serious, rowdy smack of flavour and this is what I like with a cocktail!
I liked this concept and I liked the salts. The idea of personalisation is a good one too – I can see it appealing both to customers and trade. At a teensey £2.45 per 75g pack too, they won’t break the bank. Nor do I feel they need to be limited to margaritas; I’d use the citrus one on a dark chocolate and lime parfait, or the cactus salt on a little seafood tostada! World of Zing, Ocho, consider me a fan.
www.worldofzing.com/product-category/inspired-ingredients/salts-inspired-seasonings/flavoured-salts/
www.worldofzing.com/product-category/inspired-ingredients/salts-inspired-seasonings/flavoured-salts/
