Past Event: Gin Fizz à La Mode

The original recipe for the gin fizz cocktail, first invented in 1888, was practically a milkshake with ingredients including powdered sugar, cream, and egg whites. Now, more than a century later, two independent Harlem mainstays, Sugar Hill Creamery, Harlem’s only family-owned ice cream parlor, and HH Bespoke Spirits, a craft spirits brand from the family behind the legendary NYC boutique Harlem Haberdashery, are reinventing this summertime classic with the first-ever gin fizz à la mode. To kick off the evening, Petrushka Bazin Larsen of Sugar Hill Creamery and Sharene Wood of HH Bespoke Spirits sit down with food writer Ariel Lauren Wilson to talk about their work as co-owners of family businesses, both inspired by Harlem’s storied history and located just down the street from each other on Malcolm X Boulevard.

Afterwards, try gin fizz à la mode outside on our Terrace overlooking Central Park with music from DJ Erika Hamilton. 

To view all of our Unexpected Pairings summer tasting events, click here. 

About the Speakers:
Petrushka Bazin Larsen and her husband Nick Larsen opened Sugar Hill Creamery in the Mount Morris Park District of Harlem in 2017. Dedicated to local collaborations and the best ingredients, Sugar Hill Creamery serves handmade, small batch ice cream and non-dairy frozen desserts. Many flavors are inspired by Caribbean and Midwestern cultures, as well as Harlem, the couple's neighborhood of 15 years.

Sharene Wood co-owns 5001 FLAVORS, a custom clothing company known for its custom designs and hip-hop collaborations with personalities including Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, and Alicia Keys, with her husband Guy Wood Sr. Harlem Haberdashery is the retail expression of 5001 FLAVORS and HH Bespoke Spirits is the company’s new spirits line, launched in fall 2018, with small-batch gin, vodka, and rum.

About the Host: 
Ariel Lauren Wilson is a food writer and former editor-in-chief of Edible Manhattan and Edible Brooklyn, two quarterly magazines and websites that tell the story of how the city eats and drinks.