Adventures in Alcohol | Holy Smoke - a zingy, fruity cocktail if ever there was one

Queen Victoria, the rapacious old imperialist, is commemorated in hundreds of statues and place names for everything from state capitals to railway stations. Her likeness even appears on the label of Bombay Sapphire gin

It’s debatable whether she should be commemorated with a gin – she is said to have been partial to tincture of cannabis and a 19th century tonic of claret infused with cocaine.

Nonetheless, the gin is partly the inspiration for the Holy Smoke at Flint Grill & Bar at the JW Marriott hotel in Admiralty.

The bar’s crafted mixology cocktail list has eight classic drinks on it given a very modern twist. The Traveller, for example,  is essentially a very mellow Negroni, with a base of Buffalo Trace rye whiskey mixed with Campari and vermouth. It’s served in a small pop bottle – the bar ages some drinks in the bottle and some in small barrels.

Holy Smoke (HK$145) is a twist on a largely forgotten drink called the East India, bartender Bryson Rivera says. The original mixed gin, orange curacao, orange bitters and a raspberry shrub – a shrub here being an eighteenth century fruit syrup given some added tang with the addition of a little white vinegar.

The updated shrub mixes sugar, raspberry and pineapple juices with the vinegar and, tasted on its own, is as zingy as it sounds. If you don’t want to make your own shrub at home, then use raspberry cordial and pineapple juice.