Valencia

Valencia

My holidays are here finally and after 1 year of working without any break, they are also very well deserved. This time, I have decided to go to Spain even if I know, that Spain is not a country famous for cocktails and spanish people are more into the clubbing and dancing, than going to a nice cocktail bar. In Madrid or Barcelona the cocktail culture is starting to wake up thanks to the increasing popularity of Gin, so who knows - maybe this fashion will raise some wave, that will spread across the whole country, which would lead into bigger development of cocktail culture over all. My prediction is that on the scene of the world‘s best bars, we are going to be hearing about Madrid or Barcelona more and more often, soon or later.

Lets have a look on Valencia for now...

My short trip to Valencia happened 16.3. – 18.3.2016. That is the celebration of las Falles. It has a long historical and cultural context. And because of my inability to describe even simple things in a simple way, I am the last person who should be trying to explain it to You.

Long story short and very simplified – Groups of people are making huge statues, that are somehow reflecting what happened since the last Falles, then on the last day of this festival, all of these statues are burnt except of the best one, that is chosen by a commission of the representatives of the city. 

This celebration is basically one massive street party, where almost every citizen of Valencia is on street, drinking and dancing since 08:00 a.m. and many people across the all generations are wearing traditional clothes…  I could write 10 pages to describe the atmosphere and yet it still would not be enough. If You ever wanted to visit Valencia, come here for Falles.  You will see this city in its full beauty.

Before visiting any of bars which I have chosen before, I have visited the city itself and thanks to my friend, who is studying in Valencia, I could try the traditional cocktail of this city :

Agua de Valencia

-      -   Orange Juice

-       -  Gin

-       -  Vodka

-       -  Cava (Sparkling wine from Catalonia)

-       -  Sugar

I would love to give You a recipe, that would contain specific measurements, however in few different bars the size of this drink was different. After a short research, I found out that the most official recipe contains 20cl of orange juice, 5 cl of Gin and Vodka, 70 cl of Cava and a pinch of sugar. That would be almost 1 liter of cocktail, which is a size I have never seen being served, obviously.

This cocktail have seen the world first in 1959  thanks to Constante Gil, but its being considered as a national drink of Valencia since 1970.

More than anything else, it reminds me Buck’s Fizz. The true strenght of Agua de Valencia lies in the popularity of the gin, that is growing in Spain nowadays. Maybe it lies in the strenght of the Gin itself. Buck’s Fizz always tastes the same. However if You have Agua de Valencia with a good gin, fresh orange juice that is subscribed with some subtle vodka and some better Cava that is more aromatic, the final connection of the taste has the potential to go far beyond the borders of Spain. It is very refreshing, quite aromatic and easy to drink cocktail, which You can drink at any occasion.

I would recommend to serve this cocktail into the wine glass, with a branch of a juniper wrapped into the thin twist of orange peel as a garnish…

After a while we have finished our drinks and it was time to leave and go in our own way for both of us.

My way was heading to the heart of Valencia. I always keep my standards,  so as soon as I was on my own, I got lost... By walking through the city and trying to find out where I am, I found a place named Café Del Negrito. It reminded me, that actually I have seen this place on the list of recommended bars in Valencia.