Ace of Base

Take a Melba toast. Smother it with olive oil; top with some sundried tomatoes. Sprinkle oregano and crushed peppercorns, add some lime. If ...

Take a Melba toast. Smother it with olive oil; top with some sundried tomatoes. Sprinkle oregano and crushed peppercorns, add some lime.

If that sounds like too much work then try an infusion. Adventurous chefs in the country are blending different flavours in one neutral base.

In contemporary cooking parlance, the sequence of mix, match and mature is known as infusion8212;a process in which veggies tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, lime, herbs lemon grass, mint, cilantro, basil, sage, rosemary, spices chillies, ginger, garlic, pepper and sometimes even flowers elder, rose, jasmine are dunked into a base oils, vinegars, spirits till it matures and takes on the flavour of the additive.

The result is a flavoursome, textured base. 8216;8216;Not all flavours are always available. Making our own concoction lets us create the taste we want,8217;8217; says Jaydeep Mukherji, of Indigo Deli, south Mumbai8217;s latest delicatessen. They stock vinegars infused with tangerine and rosemary, red onion and garlic and lime and red chilli Rs 250 for 500 ml.

8220;For oil infusions, we only use olive oil because it has a great aroma and flavour and takes on the nuances of the added ingredients,8217;8217; says Mukherji. Their olive oils are infused with garlic and sage, herbs and pepper, juniper and lime, chilli and basil and desi variations with coriander and curry leaves.

If you think infused oils and vinegars are only for an at-the-table drizzle, then think again. Jochen Kern, executive chef of Mumbai8217;s InterContinental, infuses spirits and uses them in the cooking process. A recent trout festival saw Kern flambeacute; the Himalayan river water fish with lemon grass-infused vodka.

If spirits have entered the wok, imagine the action at the bar counter. Vodka, often termed the 8216;hungry8217; spirit, is everyone8217;s favourite base liquor.

Salt Water Grill SWG, a seaside restobar in downtown Mumbai, is set to launch a liquor menu with various infused vodkas. Says bar manager Naveen Kotyankar, 8216;8216;If you want to get your guests to experiment, you have to try something unusual and make sure they feel it8217;s worth the money spent.8217;8217; Kotyankar8217;s guests flip over SWG8217;s plum and orange rind-infused vodkas; orders have also started coming in for entire bottles.

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Delhi bars too are trying infusions, but these, however, are not yet a part of regular menus. The ITC Maurya Sheraton even cites legal wrangles as a reason for not trying them8212;they fear changing a vodka brand8217;s basic taste may result in a suit.

Aura, the vodka bar at The Claridges, central Delhi, is among the few that dish out home-made brews like cucumber, chilli and coriander-infused vodkas. 8220;Pink Cucumber cucumber-infused vodka, cranberry juice and a splash of lime and Spicelandic with coriander-flavoured spirit are hot sellers,8217;8217; says bar in-charge Manoj Bhatia.

Olive Bar and Kitchen, in Mehrauli, serves infused vodkas on 8216;8216;special nights8217;8217;. The highlights are Zubrowka, a martini-esque cocktail with lemon grass-infused vodka and the sweet Apple Bomb, with cider-infused vodka.

Athena, in Nehru Place, has herby vodkas featuring star anise, kaffir lime, mint and dhaniya. But these drinks are mostly served on theme nights and occasions such as Valentine8217;s Day.

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Mumbai, however, isn8217;t waiting for special dates. The Indigo bar8217;s 24 infused vodkas are always ready. While most of them are used as cocktail bases, many are sipped straight. 8216;8216;Our Chilli Caipiroska with chilli pepper-infused vodka is a great hit,8217;8217; says Indigo8217;s bar manager Greg D8217;Souza, who also makes mojitos, martinis and margaritas with infused vodkas.
With inputs from Nitya Rao/New Delhi