Cocktail: Jolly Roger

Pisco is the national drink of Peru, and as you would expect the Roger Room - the sister bar of the Chicha Peruvian restaurant across the road in Peel Street - sells lots of it.

Co-founder and general manager of the two outlets Piero Marongiu also supervises the bar's mixology, and says that because Pisco comes in several different styles - sweet and dry, aromatic and non aromatic - it can substitute for a range of other spirits in classic cocktails, but that the favourites at the bar are the Pisco Sour, made with lemon juice and egg white, the Pisco Punch, made with pineapple juice, and his own creation, the Jolly Roger.

"Pisco is a colourless grape spirit which you could call a brandy," Marongiu explains.

"For the Jolly Roger I use a Pisco made from the quebranta grape, which is a non-aromatic variety, because the cocktail already has a lot of aromas from the fruit. We wanted something a little spicy so we did a mix of berries and red chilli pepper," he says.

"You want a sweet and sour mix, so we add fresh lemon juice as well as a dash of sugar syrup," he explains.

To add a finishing sparkle to the drink after double straining it into a chilled Martini glass - the bowls of the Roger Room's martini glasses are set off-centre - Marongiu tops it up with a Brazilian Methode Champenoise sparkling wine.

You could substitute your own choice of Pisco or fizz.

The drink has a good sweet and sour balance, a refreshing fruitiness and a touch of spice from the red chilli pepper. A good refreshing cocktail which will come into its own in warmer weather, but beware - the Pisco packs a punch.

Recipe

60ml Demonio de los Andes Quebranta Pisco

Splash Miolo Millésime sparkling wine

15ml lemon juice

15ml sugar syrup

3 blackberries

3 raspberries

6 blueberries

1 red chilli

• Put two blackberries, two raspberries, and five blueberries in a shaker.
• Add lemon juice and sugar syrup and crush gently with a muddler.
• Snip two small pieces off the tip of the red chilli and add those.
• Add the pisco and ice.
• Shake, double strain into a chilled martini glass, and top up with the sparkling wine.
• Garnish with one of each of the berries on a cocktail stick and serve.