Triple A

Dick Bradsell

Jul 22

The toast to the elegant Battery Operated Box pays homage to a master of the cocktail craft. Dick Bradsell was a legendary and influential bartender in London who played no small part in the cocktail renaissance of the late nineties and early aughts. He died in 2016 at the fairly young age of 56 and left behind the many famous cocktails he invented, including the Bramble, the Green Fairy, and the ever popular Espresso Martini. He was passionate about a finely crafted daiquiri, that perfectly simple combination of rum, lime and sugar, and would use it as a test of skill for vetting a good bartender. He described the ideal daiquiri experience, harkening back (in his mind) to nineteen thirties Cuba at La Floridita Bar: “Smooth aged Havana rum blended with fresh limes – that have been hand squeezed whilst wearing white cotton gloves so not a drop of the oil from the skin will taint the concoction. Sugar syrup and maraschino liqueur added, the mix flash blended and then strained through a wire mesh meticulously into a prechilled oversized cocktail glass before being set lovingly in front of the lucky customer. I pause to salivate.”

Dick’s good friend Theresa Sutton explained his inimitable style. “He adopted the protective carapace of the formal English bartender – one part Jeeves, one part Lloyd from the Shining, one part eccentric schoolmaster and a dash of surrealist poet”. His Triple A cocktail is not as well known as some of his creations, but like all of his cocktails it is surprising, robust and perfectly well balanced. It’s named after the ingredients – absinthe, apple and almond – and not the battery, but it was still the perfect pairing here. It may well be the most interesting and tasty absinthe forward cocktail I’ve had in a long time. I would not have imagined that apple juice would pair with absinthe so well. It’s just another testament to Dick’s skill and work ethos - “Perfection in bartending doesn’t just happen; you have to make the effort.” Cheers!