Spice Market

About the Spice Market

The Spice Market is a stirred cocktail that puts Timber Creek Florida Gin alongside Masumi Arabashiri sake, John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum, and a touch of clove essence, then strains up into a chilled coupe. It reads as part martini, part spiced tea, with the sake softening the gin’s edges and the falernum and clove pushing the whole thing toward warm baking spice. Sake brings a delicate, slightly sweet rice character that dilutes the gin’s intensity without watering it down the way plain water or extra ice would, while Velvet Falernum layers in lime, ginger, and clove notes that the added clove essence then amplifies further.

Timber Creek’s Florida Gin, distilled grain-to-glass in Crestview, has a clean enough profile that it does not clash with the sake’s delicacy; a bolder, more citrus forward gin would likely overwhelm these more subtle ingredients. To build the Spice Market, stir the sake, gin, and falernum together with ice until well chilled, then strain into a chilled coupe. Add the clove essence as a final aromatic touch, either as a drop on the surface or misted over the top of the glass, so its scent is the first thing you notice on approach. Its warm spice profile pairs naturally with lamb kebabs, hummus, and roasted peppers, and it works well as part of a mezze style spread with naan bread and olives, echoing the drink’s Middle Eastern leaning spice notes.

Because clove essence is potent in small amounts, add it last and taste before adding more; a single drop is often enough to carry the spice note through the whole glass without turning the drink medicinal or overwhelming the sake’s delicacy. Enjoy the Spice Market in moderation, particularly given how easily its gentle sake base can make the drink feel lighter than it actually is.

The Spice Market is a stirred cocktail that puts Timber Creek Florida Gin alongside Masumi Arabashiri sake, John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum, and a touch of clove essence, then strains up into a chilled coupe. It reads as part martini, part spiced tea, with the sake softening the gin’s edges and the falernum and clove pushing the whole thing toward warm baking spice. Sake brings a delicate, slightly sweet rice character that dilutes the gin’s intensity without watering it down the way plain water or extra ice would, while Velvet Falernum layers in lime, ginger, and clove notes that the added clove essence then amplifies further.

Timber Creek’s Florida Gin, distilled grain-to-glass in Crestview, has a clean enough profile that it does not clash with the sake’s delicacy; a bolder, more citrus forward gin would likely overwhelm these more subtle ingredients. To build the Spice Market, stir the sake, gin, and falernum together with ice until well chilled, then strain into a chilled coupe. Add the clove essence as a final aromatic touch, either as a drop on the surface or misted over the top of the glass, so its scent is the first thing you notice on approach. Its warm spice profile pairs naturally with lamb kebabs, hummus, and roasted peppers, and it works well as part of a mezze style spread with naan bread and olives, echoing the drink’s Middle Eastern leaning spice notes.

Because clove essence is potent in small amounts, add it last and taste before adding more; a single drop is often enough to carry the spice note through the whole glass without turning the drink medicinal or overwhelming the sake’s delicacy. Enjoy the Spice Market in moderation, particularly given how easily its gentle sake base can make the drink feel lighter than it actually is.