Brief History about Bananas
Bananas are some of the most versatile of tropical fruits. Originating from Southeast Asia, it is thought that bananas are one of the world’s first cultivated fruits. The path of the fruit to North America is quite arduous. The fruit starts its journey thriving in Africa, then travelling with the sailors to the Canary Islands, the West Indies and finally lands here in North America. The sweet yellow fruit that we know of today is an offshoot of the cooking banana. The cooking banana tends to be starchy, if you eat plantains then you know that I mean.
Fun Fact: Bananas used to be considered a unique treat. Often eaten with a knife and fork. How fancy!
Appeal in Alcohol
Bananas and cocktails remind us of blended or frozen drinks. Bring on the banana daiquiris! As quoted in an article by Vinepair, bartenders are punctuating cocktails with banana liqueur such as Giffard Banane du Bresil. They are also using homemade banana shrubs and even working with infusions.
Remember when I told you bananas were thriving in Africa? Well, many East Africans typically make it into beer. Rwandians call theirs Urwagwa. In this picture, courtesy of an article around the drink by The New Times, you will find tourists helping make the drink by peeling bananas.
Bananas for Banana: Our Guy Kyle
Givaudan has many banana flavors so we asked our guy Kyle Tanner, an alcohol beverage scientist, to create a cocktail with one of them. When Kyle was asked why he liked bananas he said
“We are lucky to have this tropical fruit available year round. To me it never feels ordinary when you pair it with warm spices , rum and caramel or my personal favorite – peanut butter.”
Now as you can imagine, Kyle didn’t disappoint! He created this delicious Dirty Banana Cocktail, consisting of rum, banana flavor and other signature ingredients.
So next time you see a banana don’t think of it as just another banana. It might be the ingredient that adds dimension to your alcohol beverage. Until next time: Be safe, be happy and drink responsibly!
Cheers!
Giv Connect users: Click HERE to access Kyle’s cocktail recipe. Want to learn more about Giv Connect and/or see our other cocktail flavors? Contact na.salessupport@givaudan.com.
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