With the current move towards healthy eating comes its natural successor: healthy drinking.
I don't mean browny-green smoothies and quinoa chia water; I'm talking about fun drinking. The alcoholic kind.
Esprit De Figues is the first fig liqueur to hit the Australian market, and in just a few months it has proven popular among cocktail aficionados nationwide.
I say it's health-conscious because of all the liqueurs out there, Esprit De Figues has one of the lowest levels of sugar. This provides the double benefits of allowing the natural flavours of handpicked Violette de Bordeaux figs to shine, as well as being kind to your insulin levels.
In keeping its sugar levels down, is this drink something you'd still like to sip on during a night out? Let's find out.
I don't mean browny-green smoothies and quinoa chia water; I'm talking about fun drinking. The alcoholic kind.
Esprit De Figues is the first fig liqueur to hit the Australian market, and in just a few months it has proven popular among cocktail aficionados nationwide.
I say it's health-conscious because of all the liqueurs out there, Esprit De Figues has one of the lowest levels of sugar. This provides the double benefits of allowing the natural flavours of handpicked Violette de Bordeaux figs to shine, as well as being kind to your insulin levels.
In keeping its sugar levels down, is this drink something you'd still like to sip on during a night out? Let's find out.
Esprit De Figues, as its name suggests, is a French liqueur which hit our shores towards the end of last year, and can already be found in over 400 bars in Australia. Avid fig-lovers among us probably just saw that as a Pokemon-style "catch them all" challenge.
Figs have a notoriously delicate flavour, meaning it wouldn't have taken much to make this liquour sickly sweet. Thankfully, it is instead beautifully balanced, allowing the earthy notes of figs to permeate the beverage.
We tried Esprit De Figues both on its own over ice, and mixed in cocktails and we absolutely rated it both ways. There's a distinct floral nature to this drink which makes it an excellent mixer.
Pictured above we made an Espritz Cocktail with:
30ml Esprit De Figues
50ml Soda Water
50ml Champagne
If there was a way to make champagne even more luxurious and refreshing than it already is, adding this well-crafted fig liqueur was it. This easy cocktail has become something of a staple at our house. Like bread.
Figs have a notoriously delicate flavour, meaning it wouldn't have taken much to make this liquour sickly sweet. Thankfully, it is instead beautifully balanced, allowing the earthy notes of figs to permeate the beverage.
We tried Esprit De Figues both on its own over ice, and mixed in cocktails and we absolutely rated it both ways. There's a distinct floral nature to this drink which makes it an excellent mixer.
Pictured above we made an Espritz Cocktail with:
30ml Esprit De Figues
50ml Soda Water
50ml Champagne
If there was a way to make champagne even more luxurious and refreshing than it already is, adding this well-crafted fig liqueur was it. This easy cocktail has become something of a staple at our house. Like bread.
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The low sugar content of Esprit De Figues is no accident, as noted by founder, Patrick Borg.
"Achieving the correct level of sweetness that allowed the Violette de Bordeaux figs to shine was paramount. This was key as the fig is a very delicate fruit to work with," he said.
Esprit De Figues has only 110 grams of sugar per litre compared to an example of Aperol which has over 280 grams of sugar per litre.
Overall, this is a lovely, interesting drink which stands out as a unique liqueur in bars and bottle shops around the country.
Delicious figs and healthy drinking? Sounds pretty sweet to me.
"Achieving the correct level of sweetness that allowed the Violette de Bordeaux figs to shine was paramount. This was key as the fig is a very delicate fruit to work with," he said.
Esprit De Figues has only 110 grams of sugar per litre compared to an example of Aperol which has over 280 grams of sugar per litre.
Overall, this is a lovely, interesting drink which stands out as a unique liqueur in bars and bottle shops around the country.
Delicious figs and healthy drinking? Sounds pretty sweet to me.
