Paragon White Penja Pepper Single Botanical Cordial

Product of: France

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Flavoured with hand-picked and fermented white peppers from the volcanic soil of Cameroon's Penja valley, this is one of three single botanical cordials released under Paragon's "Pepper Collection" in October 2019 by Monin in partnership with internationally renowned bartender Alex Kratena. Brix 55°

"White Penja pepper is harvested when ripe in the province of Moungo, then dried in the sun. All the production stages (harvesting, retting, washing, drying, sorting) are entirely carried out by hand. Penja Pepper has gained worldwide gastronomic reputation and in 2014 became the first product of Africa to obtain Protected Geographical Indication status (PGI). The volcanic soils of Penja give the white pepper its fresh aromas of menthol and camphor.

"Paragon seeks to protect and promote rare botanical varieties from remote areas around the world, highlighting unknown aromatic essences and making them available for those who appreciate exceptional flavours for use in cocktails.

"Created as a series of "botanical chapters" which will become an encyclopedic collection of ingredients for bartenders, the first chapter focuses on pepper and pepper berries."

Review and Tasting

Sampled on 30/09/2019

Appearance:

Cloudy/hazy, pale milky yellow. (Sample bottle best before Mar/21)

Aroma:

Horsehair, menthol and camphor (as promised on the label). There's certainly a whiff of stables to this cordial.

Taste:

Acidic with tart citrus notes followed by assertive white pepper spice.

Aftertaste:

Long acidic white pepper finish.

Overall:

A smell of stables leads to an acidic palate with enlivening white pepper. Intended as a cocktail ingredient and sampled diluted with water. Beware of the very high (pH 1.8) level of acidity in this cordial.