Floral Teapots and Smoking Plant Pots - New Summer Cocktails at the Botanist, Newcastle

Ask any cocktail lover in Newcastle their favourite bar and they'll probably tell you all about the Botanist - never ending stories of nights out with friends, a dreamy cocktail list and, of course, that tree in the middle of the bar. The Botanist has truly made its mark on Newcastle and is the key ingredient to any great night out.

Summer at the Botanist is something truly special with its much talked about roof terrace being the ultimate destination when Newcastle gets sunshine.  Very popular on a Summer afternoon if you're clever enough to bag yourself a seat it's easy to lose track of time - with the stunning views, cute garden furniture and cosy hideaways - it's the best place in Newcastle.

As the temperatures soar and we begin to hunt through the back of the wardrobe for our shorts, the Botanist have relaunched their cocktail menu and it's the perfect recipe for some fun this Summer with floral teapots, terracotta pots and magical fog all taking centre stage.

Last week I was invited up to the roof terrace for a night of foraging, flowers and flavours with an exclusive taste of some of the brand new Summer cocktails that are now available at the Botanist Newcastle.

Our evening began with the "must have" of the Summer, the Watering Can (£25.95) - a 4 to 5 serving mega cocktail to share with your nearest and dearest. There are two cans to choose from - "The Rum featuring Cherry and Thyme" is perfect for a bit of Jamaican flavour Tyneside or, if you prefer more of a British classic, the "Gin featuring Strawberry and Cucumber" is so refreshing on a hot day.

As we enjoyed our drinks we had a little introduction to foraging in the North East with the guys from Northern Wilds, who challenged the talented barmen at the Botanist to create some cocktails using some of the plants that they'd foraged from the local countryside.

When it comes to creating cocktails, the Botanist are one of the few bars in Newcastle who use fresh fruits and plants in their cocktails, so their evening collaboration with Northern Wilds was a match made in heaven. We particularly loved drinking through a special stalk straw that tasted just like aniseed.

Foraging is something that I never really knew much about before but talking to Northern Wilds they definitely captured my imagination and I added "go foraging" to my bucket list as soon as I got home.

Northern Wilds run a variety of events and courses including introductions to foraging, wild food feasting, creative crafts, wild food cooking and even stag and hen dos.

The "Pots and Planters" menu at the Botanist Newcastle is where you'll find the really fun drinks this Summer. Dramatic smoke, floral teapots and huge plant pots - the new Summer cocktails at the Botanist are the kind of drinks you'll want to order with friends then share on Instagram.

The big hit of the night was the Raspberry Disaronno Sour (£7.50) served in a terracotta plant pot, it gave an impressive performance with smoke from the dry ice billowing across the table. When the dramatics were over and we all dunked our straws in the pot seemed never ending with a very generous portion of cocktail hidden beneath the ice. A delicious mix of raspberry puree, lemon juice, pomegranate juice, Disaronno and raspberry liqueur - I will definitely be ordering again.

The "Pimms Teacup" (£7.50) arrived in a stunning floral teapot that we were all immediately cooing over (I was surprised none of us tried to sneak it away in our handbags!). With plenty of dry ice the smoke came pouring out of the spout which looked pretty impressive although left us a little impatient to get started on the drinking.  In our pot we discovered Pimms, cranberry, poppy liqueur and lemon shaken with breakfast tea.  We all agreed we weren't too fussed about the flavour of this one and were all left a bit disappointed by the amount of drink that was in the pot. I'm definitely more of a traditional Pimms drinker.

The evening ended with a Gin Carafe (£18.95), the most beautiful carafe filled with gin and tonic alongside deliciously fresh fruit. Perfect for sharing it serves 4 and we loved the "Brockmans" - Brockmans gin mixed with blueberry liqueur, fresh orange and mint. I recommend getting together a big group of friends and ordering a couple of these to share on the roof terrace - the perfect way to spend a Summer evening!

Safe to say that I'm now looking forward to a long, hot Summer on the Botanist roof terrace indulging in all of their new cocktails!

Who's with me?

I was a guest of the Botanist and enjoyed a complimentary preview of their new cocktail menu in exchange for my honest review. 

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food, north east