Cocktails of the Pyrenees, Padron's Way.

Restaurant Padron, ranked among Russia's top 10 venues by Where To Eat, has launched a new special cocktail menu. The signature set is based on popular drinks from the Iberian Peninsula, each presented in a new interpretation. Bar manager Alexander Pimkin has reimagined traditional flavors, turning familiar recipes into something unexpected. The set includes four drinks that can be tried right now.

The cocktails include Kalimotxo, Carajillo, Sabroso y Amargo, and Tepache. Each got its own reading while keeping the spirit of the original. Carajillo, for instance, which usually consists of a shot of espresso and brandy, becomes a layered drink at Padron based on cold coffee, Madeira, coffee liqueur, and spiced rum. Nitrogen has also been added, giving the drink a silky texture.

Kalimotxo, a Basque Country street drink of wine and cola, becomes a refined cocktail at Padron with Tawny Porto, a cola hydrolate, and a spice mix of cubeb pepper and Andaliman. As the bar manager sees it, this conveys the Basque philosophy of finding value in the simple and familiar.

Sabroso y Amargo is inspired by the classic Americano. In it, vermouth is replaced with Portuguese jeropiga, made from grape must and spiced aguardente. A patchouli distillate is used for depth of flavor, adding woody, herbal, and earthy notes. It's garnished with a marinated cherry pepper, whose heat smooths out the bitterness.

Another cocktail in the set is Tepache, a light fermented drink made from pineapple rinds, similar to kvass. At Padron it's made from fresh pineapple and mango juices with spices added. It can be made either fully non-alcoholic or low-alcohol, on request.

Every cocktail is the result of the bar manager's personal approach. Alexander Pimkin says all these drinks inspired him in their own way, so he found an unconventional presentation for each. The everyday Kalimotxo became a refined cocktail with a signature spice, while jeropiga — almost forgotten in Russia but popular in Portugal — ended up at the center of one of the menu's most unusual mixes. The set works both as a tour of Spain and Portugal's flavor landscapes and as a demonstration of how a wealth of cultural meaning can be conveyed through a glass.