7th May 2012

Counting cocktail calories

Cocktail bar Après London – situated immediately opposite Selfridges – has come up with a cunning plan to keep the custom of those who might be wanting to curb their calorie intake in the run-up to summer.

‘Skinny Sippers Vs Huge Hitters’ runs until the end of May and enables customers to choose either traditional calorie-packed cocktails or ‘guilt-free’ equivalents containing between 99 and 200 calories.

“Using the simple principle of removing sugar and carbohydrates traces from cocktails and then labelling them low-cal was just too easy and a route I wanted to avoid,” said Jez Hewitt, head mixologist, who concocted the Skinny Sippers. “Instead I focused more on using ingredients that were naturally sweet or bitter and played with complements to help infuse and create new refreshing tastes.”

Après Lounge and Cocktail Bar, 31 Duke Street, London W1U 1LG is open Monday – Saturday from 5.00pm – late.