How to make a fairy floss martini and a vera green cocktail

The team from the hip new restaurant, The Village at Narellan, show you how to shake up your next dinner party and impress your friends by making two eyecatching cocktails.

The Village bartender Luke Muller holds a fairy floss martini and a vera green cocktail.

TWO COCKTAILS

Fairy Floss Martini

Ingredients: 45ml vodka, 10ml fresh lemon juice, 45ml fresh raspberry puree and 15ml blood orange syrup.

Method: Place all of the ingredients into a cocktail shaker, add ice cubes and shake vigorously.

Pour into a chilled glass. Garnish with fairy floss and serve and enjoy immediately.

Vera Green

Ingredients: 45ml gin, 20ml fresh cucumber juice, 20ml aloe vera juice and 20ml limoncello.

Method: As per the fairy floss martini recipe, place all ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and then pour into a child glass and enjoy immediately.

Aloe vera juice is available for purchase from most supermarkets.

Bartender Luke Muller sips a vera green cocktail.

The Village’s fairy floss martini.

EASTERN Suburbs-style cocktails are proving to be a winner at Narellan’s funky new restaurant, The Village.

The trendy eatery, which opened before Christmas, has already attracted a loyal following in the Macarthur area.

Its fairy floss martini, white chocolate passionfruit martini and vera green cocktails are proving to be the most popular items on its extensive menu.

Fairy floss martini is made with ingredients including fresh raspberry puree.

Luke Muller prepares a cocktail for customers.

The restaurant is the latest offering from the Darlin Group, which runs five other eateries in Sydney, including in the Eastern Suburbs.

The Village is the group’s first in Sydney’s southwest.

Darlin Group director George Williams said cocktails were popular with its customers because of their presentation, aesthetics and the “wow” factor.

“People like the smell and look of cocktails,” he said.

“If you see a tray of our fairy floss martinis, you’ll say, ‘I want one of those’.”

He estimated that 75 per cent to 80 per cent of cocktail customers were women because they liked a drink that was on the sweeter side.

Looking to the hot cocktail trends for 2017, Mr Williams tipped the classics, including mojitos, margaritas and Long Island iced teas, would remain popular.

However, he said classics with a twist, such as lychee mojitos, would also turn heads this year.

What to eat when enjoying cocktails with friends?

Mr Williams recommends choosing from The Village’s tapas menu, shared boards or pizzas.

Although more of a beer drinker, Mr Williams said one of his favourite cocktails was the blood orange margarita because he preferred sour cocktails and also liked the bitter orange taste.

The Village is open every day in Narellan Town Centre’s new north side precinct, and also has an extensive wine list and a range of tap beer.