Today bar culture has changed a lot, becoming more relevant and universal, while the art of mixology is gaining momentum and appears in all its glory. Spirits- and cocktail manufacturers are paying special attention to the quality of drinks, taking care of their benefits and reducing their harm for body and nature: the use of environmentally friendly products, sugar reduction, the rejection of preservatives and special attention to sustainability.
Held every year in the capital of Finland, the Helsinki Drink Festival (HDF) is the largest cocktail festival in Nordic countries. This is a pure holiday for everyone who cares about perfect drinks: here you can get an idea about the production of various spirits, learn about new producers as well as also get inspired with the culture of cocktails. A huge selection of drinks presented at the festival encourages you to try new things and push the boundaries of what is possible – even simply at your own home!
In this feature – four unique in its own way brands, presenting the highlights of their story and production, talking about future of mixology and sharing best tips & recipes for cocktails that can be easily prepared at home.
KÅSKA: Drink Small, Taste Big
KÅSKA was born out of a simple idea — because drinking has changed, it’s time for spirits to change too: less alcohol, full experiences.
KÅSKA makes bold, flavour filled drinks and spirits with low- or no-alcohol. The goal is to create positive change inside the glass and outside the glass: drinking better, drinking less, and impacting others positively with social impact — KÅSKA gives out a part of its sales margin from each drink or products sold directly to supporting non-profit impact projects and organizations that focus on social wellbeing.
KÅSKA has been participating in HDF since its inception, and their first product was presented here.
In the Photo: CVO & Founder Eetu Topo
“HDF is possibly the greatest cocktail celebration happening in Finland currently. It’s an amazing opportunity to taste a wide variety of different drinks, paired with solid food and live music. Quite unique, there are basically no other events like this here, — says CVO and founder Eetu Topo. — It was our first time of particiopation, and we did it with great enthusiasm, also getting cocktail-lovers closer to our drinks. KÅSKA drinks reflect the way we think — nothing unnecessary, pure botanical taste, no nonsense. Our perfect serves are super easy to make, and rewarding to sip and serve.”
Signature drinks Smål Boosted Aperitivo and Smål Boosted Gin, are the perfect basis of most popular KÅSKA cocktails, of which Eetu shares the recipes:
SMÅL SPRITZ (0,5% alcohol)
Made with Smål Boosted Aperitivo, an aperitivo so rich in taste that you only need 10 ml per drink to get that rich taste for new favourite low-alcohol spritz.
Ingredients:
- 10ml Smål Boosted Aperitivo
- 200ml alcohol free sparkling wine
- ice cubes
- slice of orange & mint twig
Method: Measure the aperitif into a large wine glass filled with ice, then top with non-alcoholic sparkling wine. Mix gently and garnish with an orange slice and fresh mint.
SMÅL GIN & TONIC (2% alcohol)
Made with flavour-banging Smål Boosted Gin, giving you a gin & tonic with 5x less alcohol than traditional G&T, yet with all the botanical goodness.
Ingredients:
- 10 ml Smål boosted gin
- 200 ml Indian tonic water
- ice cubes
- slice of lemon & rosemary twig
Method: In a large glass on the rocks/highball measure out the gin resin with the measure that comes with the bottle, add plenty of ice, and top with a bottle of Indian tonic. Mix gently and garnish with a thin slice of lemon and a sprig of rosemary. For a stronger version, adjust the gin to tonic ratio.
Eetu Topo: “In my opinion, the two main trends in mixology are less alcohol and more awareness on the things we pour into our glass. Low- and no-alcohol shows no signs of slowing, and it’s quite possible that traditional booze heavy offerings might become a minority in the coming decades. While this is going on, people are also paying much more attention on the environmental, health and societal aspects of their drinks: Organic drinks, carbon neutral or negative drinks, functional drinks, less sugar, less carbs, fair trade and impactful business practices are really coming into focus. We will continue to introduce completely groundbreaking new products and world firsts to the market, that’s what we have been doing so far too. We want to make drinking low- and no alcohol drinks as easy and tasty as possible, because drinking has changed, and drinks need to change as well. That’s actually the reason behind our company name too: KÅSKA comes from the Finnish word “koska”, meaning “because”. So we will continue to lead the positive change to the best of our abilities.”
Contacts: hello@kaskadrinks.com
Instagram: @kaskadrinks
PUNCH Club: Artisan drinks (for) Mindful Hedonists
The words on the logo were not chosen by chance — our spirit and mind are in constant conflict, and the creators of PUNCH Club deliberately called this contradiction hedonism: “The one who seeks to try everything that life has to offer, but at the same time keeps the door open for everyone behind him. We are tired of monotonous drinks that exhaust the mind with routine.”
Thus, the PUNCH Club product is a mirror in which you can see the perfect moment for yourself, everything that you find. Sustainability, innovation and the desire to experiment and explore are the foundations of PUNCH Club.
PUNCH Club creates ready-to-drink cocktails designed to be enjoyed straight from the bottle. It’s just about the ice. A great choice when you want something light but refreshing.
The preparation is very simple and takes a few seconds: the glass is filled with ice and the drink is poured over — the cocktail is ready to drink!
“Our recipes are designed to tickle your taste buds, our goal is not to fool them with any artificial tricks. Talking about our production, we value the greenness of the earth and strive to keep it green, — says PUNCH Club founder Joosep Raudsepp. — When creating drinks, we use real botanicals, plants and herbs to create taste. We do not use preservatives or other harmful chemicals. Everything is as natural as possible. We also try to keep sugar levels to a minimum. On average, our ready-to-drink smoothies contain about half the sugar of regular smoothies.”
The Absolute bestsellers of PUNCH Club range are PINA COLADA, NEGRONI, AVIATION, ESPRESSO MARTINI, WHISKEY SOUR.
According to the creators of the brand, serving cocktails on tap solves 3 key problems of the hospitality industry:
- Efficiency — ready-made cocktails are served 5 times faster.
- Quality — Hand-brewed drinks rely heavily on the maker’s skillful sleight of hand, which means that even in the same place, quality can vary greatly.
- Sustainability — Ready-made shakes generate 20 times less packaging waste, have a lower carbon footprint and lower CO2 emissions due to ease of logistics and transportation.
Joosep Raudsepp: “We take part in various festivals with great desire. HDF — great event with good vibes and cozy atmosphere. For professionals it gives a good opportunity to showcase your products and also to have a glimpse of what other industry peers are doing. For amateurs it is the perfect environment to get to know more about cocktails and cocktail culture nowadays in general. Huge selection of tasty drinks, plus experienced experts who will gladly share with you the knowledge and give interesting recommendations & tips.”
Contacts: info@punch.club
Instagram: @punchdrinks
DISCARDED SPIRITS: Once Wasted, Now Treasured
When a coffee producer extracts the bean from the coffee berry, they discard what’s left: the fruit. The fruit is called cascara, it’s deep-red in colour, rich and fruity in flavour. Discarded cascara is the basis of drinks produced by DISCARDED SPIRITS.
In the Photo: DISCARDED Brand Ambassador Mika Koivula
“DISCARDED SPIRITS wants to show the waste can be beautiful. Right now our top spirits — DISCARDED rum with Banana peel & DISCARDED Sweet Cascara Vermouth — both have two normally discarded ingredients, — says DISCARDED Brand Ambassador in Finland Mika Koivula. — The base of our vermouth is a fortified wine, previously used to impart flavour into casks in preparation for the final stages of malt whisky maturation. After use, this wine spirit is often sold on or even disposed of. The fortified wine base is blended together with the cascara extract for sweetness, and then wormwood extract for bitterness which come together to complete our sweet cascara vermouth. We repurpose the cascara to create a rich, fruity vermouth with purpose. DISCARDED slots into vermouth-forward cocktails powerfully, adding depth of flavour and a distinct fruity bitterness to a mixology classic.”
One of the cocktails, presented by Mika, is based on DISCARDED Sweet Cascara Vermouth, another two — using DISCARDED Rum with Banana Peels.
STRAWBERRY TOP NEGRONI
Ingredients:
- 30ml Discarded Sweet Cascara Vermouth
- 20ml Strawberry Top Campari*
- 20ml Hendrick’s Gin
Method: Stir
Glass: Old Fashioned
Ice: Yes
Garnish: Orange or lemon peel, strawberry or nothing
*When enjoying fresh strawberry, cut the tops off. They always have a little bit of strawberry with them. Put those tops and campari to a jar with following recipe:
- 50g Strawberry tops
- 200g Campari
Microwave with 600w for 3 minutes. Let is cool down, strain and bottle.
“Whiskey producers want to have a pleasant Caribbean taste, they buy and mix their own blends of rum to flavor barrels. Once the rum has matured enough in barrels, it is no longer good, but now it gets new life with DISCARDED, — says Mika. — The banana peel was found in a factory in the Netherlands that makes banana products for other food industries, and they don’t need the peel. With peel and old rum, we get the product DISCARDED SPIRITS — Discarded Rum with Banana Peels.
DISCARDED DAIQUIRI
- 50ml Discarded rum with Banana peel
- 25ml Citrus Cordial*
- 25ml Sugar Syrup 1:1
Method: Shake
Glass: Cocktail
Ice: Yes
*Weigh 250g of citrus husk, peels or juiced citruses to jar, add 250g of sugar and 5g of citric acid. Mix and let it maturate overnight. Add 250g of boiling water and mix until all the sugar have been dissolved. Strain, bottle and keep in a fridge.
DISCARDED MAI TAI
*The winner of the best cocktail in Helsinki Drink Festival 2022
- 40ml Discarded rum with Banana peel
- 20ml Discarded Sweet Cascara Vermouth
- 20ml Avocado Orgeat*
- 10ml Citrus cordial**
- 10ml Lime juice
Method: Shake
Glass: Double Old Fashioned
Ice: Yes
Garnish: Orange and or mint, or nothing
*Avocado Orgeat:
- 80g Avocado pitts (about 2 pitts)
- 300g Sugar
- 300g Water
Wash and dry avocado pitts. Cut them in peaces or grate them. Toast them with medium heat. Be careful that you don’t burn them. The colour should be nice and orange. Add sugar and give a quick stir. Add water and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Let it cool down. Strain, bottle and keep in a fridge.
**See the recipe below
“DISCARDED is not only repeated ingredients, but packaging. The actual bottle is minimum 65% of reused glass, the labels are made from sugar cane leftover paper, the tin top is 100% of recycled tin foil, and the cork is made from leftovers from cork industry, — continues Mika. — So the products and the story and everything Discarded stands for in: take down your waste. Rethink what you could use.”
Mika Koivula: “Participation in festivals is always a holiday. I think HDF is great — a great place to learn more, meet the people behind the brands, expand your knowledge and network, learn new tricks and tips, try new products. Our industry is moving forward, I mean bars will be more relaxed, more fun and they sell great drinks in every category. So bars goes more to neighbourhood bar style but with super high class beverages. But the same time I think that great drinks or fine drinks will be more common. So you start to get a fine cocktail in most of the restaurants, hotels and bars. People will figure out that making great drinks is not hard job if you are doing it right.”
Manufactured by DISCARDED SPIRITS in the UK
Instagram: @discardedspirits
THE HELSINKI DISTILLING COMPANY: Internationally Acclaimed Spirits
THE HELSINKI DISTILLING COMPANY became operational in 2014 as the first distillery in Helsinki for over a century. All products are hand-made from local, natural, high quality materials — with flair. Located in the heart of the gastronomic culture of Helsinki, Teurastamo, this little corner has been producing award winning premium gin, the first local aquavit, applejack from Finnish apples, long drinks and of course, most importantly, rye and single malt whiskey.
THE HELSINKI DISTILLING CO. is the result of the ambitions of two long-time friends and eager whiskey enthusiasts, Kai Kilpinen (Master Blender) and Mikko Mykkänen (CEO & Master Distiller). Their passion is to produce premium spirits that people will truly enjoy.
In the Photo: Master Blender Kai Kilpinen
“Our pride is our distilled rye whiskey, for which we received gold at the Meininger’s International Spirits Award in Germany, — says Kai Kilpinen. — We matured our distillates in new 200-litre American oak barrels, and then spent the final aging in old rum barrels from Jamaica and Guyana. The aftertaste gave the drink its characteristic, now also beautifully rewarded taste. The taste of whiskey is rich, with aromas of vanilla, apricot, caramel, licorice and cocoa. It is also one of our most popular drinks. It is wonderful, both in pure form and in cocktails.”
In addition to production, THE HELSINKI DISTILLING CO. boasts an excellent cocktail bar called Tislaamo — Distillery Bar, which serves drinks and cocktails based on gin and whiskey. Below a few recipes of easy-to-make cocktails based on iconic HDCO spirits.
HELSINKI SPRITZ
Ingredients:
- Helsinki Lingonberry-Gin Liqueur
- Tonic
- Sparkling Wine
- Lingonberry
- Pink Grapefruit
- Ice
Method: 40 ml Helsinki Lingonberry-Gin Liqueur top up with Premium Tonic Water & Sparkling Wine. Serve with lots of ice, a slice of pink grapefruit & lingonberries.
GIN-GIN MULE
Ingredients:
- Helsinki Sailors Gin
- Fresh Lime
- Ginger Beer
- Ice
Method: 40 ml Helsinki Sailors Gin top up with Ginger Beer in a mug for a Moscow mule. Serve with lots of ice, a splash of lime juice and a lime twist.
LIVE FAST RYE YOUNG
Ingredients:
- Bourbon Cask Rye Malt
- Yellow Chartreuse
- Amaro
- Fresh Lemon
- Ice
Method: 30 ml Bourbon Cask Rye Malt, 15 ml Yellow Chartreuse And 15 ml Amaro pour in Old Fashioned glass, top with ice and garnished with a slice of fresh lemon.
Kai Kilpinen: “Participation in competitions and festivals is always a very joyful event for us. HDF has not been held for two years, so for all participants it was a very long-awaited event. Such festivals are very useful both for professionals and lovers of good drinks. Here everyone can draw something useful and learn something new. It’s nice to see that such festivals attract both young and long-termed producers, and visitors, both national and international, find new drinks and favorite classics for themselves. I would like to do more to celebrate with such events.”
Contacts: info@hdco.fi
Instagram: @helsinkidistilling
Text: Marina Timo
Photo courtesy: EATWEEKGUIDE
