I was expecting the hyper-colorful doors, bountiful flowers pouring over balconies, and rustic beaches. But I was not expecting the incredible cocktail scene in Cartagena! In general, Cartagena had an impressive design aesthetic, with bold interiors and amazing attention to detail in shops, hotels, and restaurants. Given that, it made sense that would travel into their cocktails.
At the three-story Alquìmico, we had rooftop Milk Punch (no milk, just plantain distilled mezcal, sherry, and chili seeds).
At the amazing Celele, the spicy Guayarita (tequila blanco, mezcal, sour guava chutney, mandarin lemon and basket pepper) came in the wee-est glass I’ve ever been served but only so that you could reserve the rest of the drink on ice so you never had an un-cold sip.
The vibe at El Baron was super cool, and so were their drinks. They used anchan, a flower I’ve really only seen in Thailand where it’s everywhere, in two of them. I had a purple cocktail and they also used it on another as a garnish. Gorgeous!
And at Blue Apple Beach, we had a refreshing seaside cocktail made out of hibiscus, chorizo berry and basil with viche, a traditional Colombian spirit made from fermented sugarcane juice. Take me back.
Special shout-out to the non-alc smoothies at Nia. The smears of yogurt on the glass before they poured in the strawberry, blackberry, mango, banana and dragonfruit were a work of art.
