Seoul Drifter

The Seoul Drifter is a ‘drink’ that I developed for a string of ‘Molecular Nights’ at the French Grill restaurant at the JW Marriott Hanoi. The intended pairing with fine de claire oysters was foremost in my mind when developing the menu and to serve a sphere that could be consumed like an oyster seemed like a fun solution. After several false starts with flavours (including a truly wretched seaweed infused sake…), I hit upon this combination which is served in an oyster shell and consumed in one slurp. The first flavours in the mouth are soju, aged sherry vinegar, hazelnut oil and a home made buddha hand tincture – not savoury exactly but ambling in that general direction. As soon as the alginate sphere bursts, however, there is an immediate about turn as the sweetness of clarified white grape floods the mouth, joined by the tartness of clarified plum and a hibiscus infusion and a hint more soju. It’s a startling but fleeting moment of pleasure, known in some circles as a ‘mouthgasm’ which quickly disappears leaving only a memory of the experience…