Drinks to try

The London (freshly squeezed grapefruit shaken with Bombay Sapphire gin and Lillet. Served straight up and finished with Cremant de Loire) - Gordon Ramsey at The London West Hollywood / 1020 N. San Vicente Blvd. / West Hollywood, CA 90069 / www.thelondonwesthollywood.com/gordon_ramsay

English Quat (gin, mint, kumquats) - Boé Restaurant inside The Crescent Hotel / 403 N. Crescent Dr. @ Brighton Way / Beverly Hills, CA / 310.247.0505 / www.crescentbh.com / if it's anything like the english twat i'm friends with, it's bound to be good

The Sour Kraut
When a friend challenged Vincenzo Marianella to "make something special," the Copa d'Oro barman went straight to the kitchen to find inspiration. His eyes immediately landed on sweet orange marmalade and Dijon mustard, and he thought, "Why not?" The end result: the bar's most unusual drink, the Sour Kraut.

This is one surprising but very quaffable drink. It's tart and tangy with a subtle hint of mustard--if the ingredient wasn't listed on the menu, you probably wouldn't know it was there--and a touch of sweetness from the marmalade. "I'm surprised no one's really used mustard before," says Marianella. "It just adds an interesting, unique flavor." And it makes for a drink that's great with the bar's grilled cheese and ham sandwich, though it really cries out for a hot dog or soft pretzel (even better: a soft pretzel-wrapped hot dog).

Marianella uses Martin Miller's gin but says 10 Cane rum or Partida Blanco tequila also work. Because some marmalades are sweeter than others, he suggests adjusting the mustard and citrus ratio accordingly. Here's his recipe.


The Sour Kraut
Makes one drink

Ice
2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce Cointreau
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon sweet orange marmalade
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, Cointreau, lemon juice, mustard and marmalade and shake well. Strain into chilled martini glass and serve.

Copa d'Oro / 217 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA / 310-576-3030 / www.copadoro.com