We hope you’re enjoying the champagne cocktails featured in this month’s Elixir column. The folks at Robust Wine Bar sure are having fun pouring them – so much so that they’ve created one more concoction, this time using wild hibiscus flowers. When owner Stanley Browne discovered Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Rose Syrup, a product made from hand-picked wild hibiscus flowers and the essence of two dozen roses, he knew that the sweet, syrup-drenched purple blossoms would make a standout addition to any sparkling sipper at his Webster Groves wine bar.
If you order The Robust Royale, we can attest that the $1 up-charge for that glass of champagne will be well worth it. The folks at Robust drop an edible blossom into the bottom of a champagne flute, then fill it with one of the four bubbles available by the glass. The drink holds the taste of deeply sweet raspberries, and we love how the petals flutter and begin to unfold when the champagne tickles them.
This article appears in February 2011.