Growing up in Scotland, before global warming made ‘taps aff’ weather (the weather in which the pasty Scottish male deems it necessary to take his top off, which usually starts at a balmy 18 degrees) a more common occurrence, we would have about one hot week a year. Supermarkets would run out of disposable barbecues and sausages, near riots would happen in public parks, and your Mum might let you have a ‘float’. Known here as ‘spiders’, that tall glass of what we in Scotland call fizzy juice (and the rest of the world calls soda) with a healthy scoop of vanilla ice cream was pure decadence and would make the sunburn and midge bites seem worth it.
Ice cream in cocktails actually has quite a venerable history. It’s unsurprising that the US, home of the soda parlour, was an early adopter. William Schmidt’s ‘The Flowing Bowl’, which was published in 1892, included quite a few ice cream cocktails, including the brandy and rum-laced Glorious Fourth.
As a wave of throwback kitsch hits cocktail menus, it’s unsurprising that these childhood treats are being given an adult makeover. Always ahead of the curve, Melbourne bar Byrdi featured a Weis Bar cocktail a few years ago – more of a milk punch, this rye, mango and white chocolate concoction hit all the right nostalgic buttons. Affogatos are a mainstay on Italian restaurant menus, creating a delicious trifecta of booze, creaminess and bitter espresso, which can be easily tweaked to give a bespoke experience. Ice cream can also be incorporated as a boozy blended milkshake or full spider-style, with a scoop acting as a garnish and slowly blending in as you drink it. It can add extra texture to creamy drinks like a Piña Colada or egg white drinks like Fizzes. And let’s not forget our dairy-free friends – sorbets and granitas are a great way of incorporating seasonal fruit and a satisfying iciness to drinks.
Ice cream in cocktails actually has quite a venerable history. It’s unsurprising that the US, home of the soda parlour, was an early adopter. William Schmidt’s ‘The Flowing Bowl’, which was published in 1892, included quite a few ice cream cocktails, including the brandy and rum-laced Glorious Fourth. Harry Craddock included the Silver Stallion Fizz in the ‘Savoy Cocktail Book’. Wisconsin, though, is the state that really made the ice cream cocktail its own. Being a prodigious dairy producer and the birthplace of the first milkshake maker (which would eventually morph into the blender we know today), it follows that Wisconsin’s famous supper clubs perfected the after-dinner ice cream cocktail. Ordinarily, cream-based drinks like the Grasshopper and Brandy Alexander are Wisconsin-ified with the substitution of ice cream, and the Pink Squirrel (a rich medley of crème de cacao, crème de noyaux and vanilla ice cream) is said to have been invented at Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge, Milwaukee in the 1940s.
Australia has its own history of spiders (so-called because of the reaction that happens when the ice cream hits the carbonation, which looks like a spider web). According to Anna Bosco, an academic who is running a series of pop-ups called ‘Tipsy Spider’ this summer, Australians have been enjoying this cooling beverage since the 1850s. Pre refrigeration, ice cream would have been a real luxury, and one of the drinks on their menu is a blend of brandy with ginger beer and ice cream, a nod to the Original Spider that would have been drunk in the gold rush era. Bosco’s partner in the venture, Fred Siggins, says ‘we’re leaning into that sense of nostalgic fun. There has been a swing away from austere classics and pared-back modernity to engaging drinks with bright colours and bright flavours.’
Given the hot weather in Australia and our access to good produce and excellent dairy (and dairy replacements – at Tipsy Spider they use Billy Van Dairy’s coconut sorbet for a lighter twist on a Piña Colada), there’s no reason we can’t have some fun with it. Let’s call it – it’s the Summer of the Spider!
1. Araña Negre
Jordan Lynagh, Bomba
Ingredients:
40ml orange infused vodka (add peel of one orange to one bottle vodka, allow to infuse overnight)
15ml Pedro Ximinez Sherry
2.5ml Fernet Branca
Top root beer (leave room for ice cream)
1 scoop vanilla ice cream
Glass: old school sundae glass or large highball
Garnish: grated nutmeg, skewered orange wedge and cherry
Method: build all ingredients except ice cream in glass, add ice and top with ice cream. Grate nutmeg on top and garnish.
2. The Glorious Fourth
Adapted from ‘The Flowing Bowl’ by William Schmidt
Ingredients:
50ml brandy
10ml Jamaican rum
20ml lime juice
10ml sugar syrup (can be adjusted depending how sweet your ice cream is)
1 scoop vanilla ice cream
Glass: coupe
Garnish: lime zest
Method:
Add all of your ingredients to shaker tins, add ice and shake. Double strain into chilled glass and grate lime zest over the top. Could also be blended.
3. Boozy Granita
‘Strong, Sweet and Bitter’, Cara Devine
Ingredients (this recipe makes about 6 servings, it can be scaled up or down):
100ml (3 oz) fresh grapefruit juice
100ml (3 oz) fresh orange juice
200ml (6 oz) blanc/bianco vermouth
100ml (3 oz) peach liqueur
100ml (3 oz) water
30ml (1oz) gin per glass when serving (optional)
Garnish: mint sprig and grapefruit wedge
Glassware: Sundae or rocks glass
Method:
Add everything to a freezer friendly bowl (except the gin) and freeze, preferably overnight. Take out and gently flake up. Add a shot of gin to each glass and scoop the granita on top. Garnish, add a straw or spoon (or both!) and enjoy!