Molecular mixology

Molecular mixology is the term applied to the process of creating cocktails using the equipment and techniques of molecular gastronomy.

Spherification and foam techniques in a single cocktail called Sparkling Watermelon

These methods enable the creation of greater intensities and varieties of flavour, flavour combinations and different ways of presenting drinks, for example using gels, powders, foams, atomised sprays etc., as well as affecting the appearance of the cocktail

History

The Art of Drink website suggests that the earliest example of what we now call molecular mixology is the long-established bartending practice of layering ingredients in cocktails. This experimentation with the density and viscosity of fluids uses the principles of scientific investigation that are fundamental to molecular mixology.

Equipment

The equipment used in molecular mixology can range from comparatively simple items such as blowtorches (frequently used in restaurant cooking) to more specialised items such as a vacuum sealer, a device for combining and infusing ingredients in a vacuum and thus preserving their flavours and enhancing the finished product. These infusions allow unexpected combinations of flavours in cocktails, including flavourings from non-edible substances, such as tobacco and leather (found in the Smoked Old Fashioned cocktail) and perfume (as in the Champagne No.5).Another machine which is used by the best mixologists is the Rotavap. This is a vacuum rotary distillation setup, which allows the extraction of aromas, low temperature reduction of juices and the production of flavored spirits.

Techniques

The techniques used by a mixologist are mostly bound to the new equipment which is provided by the molecular gastronomy. They are, for the most part, adaptions of new techniques for food preparation, for example: were originally created for food applications, but nowadays you can find aires on top of cocktails.

Spherification

The spherification is one of the techniques applied to molecular mixology, is the culinary process of shaping a liquid into spheres, they can be small like a caviar or larger like an egg yolk.