Shake up your wedding plans with the ultimate autumn cocktail from Oxford mixologists

Planning an autumn wedding and want a big-day cocktail to match the season? Your Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wedding spoke to David Indrak, operations manager of Oxford's The Cocktail Service. Read on for his expert advice...

Like food, cocktails should match the seasons and in the UK we are lucky to have some an abundance of fruits at this time of year. At The Cocktail Service, we change our menus with the seasons and our autumn menu is one of the most popular. As we move from summer to winter, there is the opportunity to use heartier flavours such as blackberries, plums and elderberries, fruits that allow for a more warming cocktail than their summer counterparts.

Our pick for a big day cocktail would have to be the Bramble, a modern classic invented in London in the nineties. The Bramble is perfect for a wedding as it is universally popular, looks delicious and is very easy and quick to make for the bartenders. It's also a finely balanced drink that blends gin, blackberry liqueur, lemon juice and a little sugar - always a big crowd pleaser.

Bramble Ingredients
50ml dry gin
30ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed
15ml sugar syrup
15ml crème de mûre (blackberry liqueur)
Lemon slice and fresh blackberries to garnish

Method
In a short glass filled with crushed ice, please add gin, lemon juice and sugar syrup. Give the ingredients a vigorous stir to blend the ingredients. Top up the glass with crushed ice and drizzle the crème de mûre over the top. Garnish with a lemon slice and a few blackberries.

For more on The Cocktail Service, call 01865 251 431, or visit www.thecocktailservice.co.uk
and for more expert advice on autumn weddings, check out the October/November issue of Your Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wedding – on sale now.