Ten Mill Lane, Bar of the Year finalist in this year’s Cardiff event of The Regional Awards, have launched a new cocktail range inspired by artworks produced by students from the University of South Wales.
The range includes 12 delicious cocktails inspired by some of the most defining pieces of art produced throughout 150 years of artistic movements including Andy Warhol’s Campbell Soup, Van Gogh’s Red Poppies and Daisies and Banksy’s Girl with a Balloon.
The bar claims the new menu will be its best ever with Managing Director, Dave Abbott hinting that this may only be the beginning of themed cocktail menus for Ten Mill Lane. The staff have had a lot of input in the creation of the new menu and Dave admits that they’re already thinking of what could come next, although his lips are firmly sealed as to what this may involve.
At a launch evening last week, the basement of Jacob’s Antiques Market on West Canal Wharf, Cardiff became the trendy setting for an art gallery-style exhibition of Ten Mill Lane’s new cocktail range, with each cocktail matched to the artwork that inspired it.
Here are some of the masterpieces on Ten Mill Lane’s new art-inspired cocktail menu
1) The Treachery of Image by Rene Magritte
Ten Mill Lane recreate the taste of a smoky pipe using the oaky,coffee-like flavours of bourbon whisky combined with sweet vermouth to balance the taste. Meanwhile, spiced rum introduces flavours of cloves, cinnamon and vanilla to the mix and absinthe adds a warm kick, making for a smooth-sipping drink - just like smoking from a pipe in front of an open fire.
2) Campbell’s Soup Can by Andy Warhol
Inspired by one of Andy Warhol’s most well-known paintings, this cocktail is a modern, bold twist on the traditional Bloody Mary made using mango juice for a sweeter flavour and finished with candyfloss sprinkled with chilli powder.
3) Blue Dress by Leonid Afremov
Our favourite cocktail of them all, the Blue Dress cocktail is a beautiful shade of lilac-blue, reflective of the painting that inspired it and of sights, sounds and smells we associate with the seaside. Sourced from a quaint Mediterranean fishing village, the gin is a great match for a seaside theme, accentuated by blue liqueur, with green tea and elderflower cordial creating fruity tones.
The full list of cocktails on the new menu are;
I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold by Charles Demuth
Bleeding Medals by Gilbert and George
Summer by Alphonse Mucha
Autumn Rhythm – Jackson Pollock
Blue Dress – Leonid Afremov
Self Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Humminbird – Frida Kahlo
The Treachery of Image – Rene Magritte
Red Poppies and Daisies – Vincent van Gogh
A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande – Georges Seurat
Les Demoiselles D-Avignon by Pablo Picasso
Campbell’s Soup Can – Andy Warhol
Girl with a Balloon – Banksy
