The Aperitif Guy

There’s something very wonderfully decadent about a Champagne-based cocktail. It can be a perfect way to start an evening and, depending what you want in the mix, can take you in all kinds of directions: deeply romantic, sensual or just plain giddy. Whatever your plans for marking the New Year, there's a fizzy drink to help you on your way. Hélène de Troie Pour a measure of rose-flavour liqueur into the bottom of a Champagne glass and top up with pink champagne. Garnish with a rose petal. This has got to be the most romantic cocktail I know. It’s been a favourite of mine since I first tried it in a Greek restaurant in France. (The name means “Helen of Troy.”) It has a deep pink colour and smells of damask roses.  This is the cocktail to serve if you're planning a New Year's Eve a proposal. I make it with French Crème de Rose liqueur (available online or in specialist cocktail shops). It has a deep colour and very strong flavour of roses. Italian rosolio liqueur is...

With St Valentine’s day coming up, I’ve been getting all romantic this week. Actually, I haven’t. the Beloved’s away trying to be a latter-day Billie-Jean King, and I’m at home with bins to empty and laundry to do. My nieces have always insisted St Valentine’s day is a celebration for everyone you love, not just for romantic feelings, so I took the opportunity for a night out with a friend on Friday and we frolicked gleefully in the local cocktail bar. Wanting to write about cocktails based on flower liqueurs, that’s what we drank. Flower flavours are not to everyone’s taste, I get that. I’ve only to mention violets to hear people screaming “Zoflora!” and “old ladies’ knickers!” I’ve never drunk either of those things, but, if your experience is broader than mine, feel free to denounce me. Personally, I love Turkish delight, elderflower G&T and orange-flower water in sweet coffee. Here are some ideas for flower-flavoured cocktails you might want to serve as a prel...