Edinburgh cocktail bar owner invents technique to replace water content in alcohol

Ian's innovative bars have landed on top cocktail bar lists

Ian McPherson wanted to push the boundaries of the industry having become frustrated with their limitations.Fascinated by sub-zero temperatures, an interest amplified by his gelato training at the Gelato University in Bologna, Ian installed an operational lab beneath Panda & Sons called the ‘Brain Melting Society’ where he could experiment and dissect the freezing process.He discovered the method of fractional concentration - replacing water in spirits with another non-alcoholic liquid - coining the technique, ’switching’.

This involves a process of freezing the spirit to a specific, differing temperature to split its water content.

Ian said: “Switching allows you to be creative with flavour and texture, giving the bartender more freedom to be creative and control over the end result.”A secretive, silent menu operates in Panda & Sons, allowing the keen cocktail enthusiast to experience a wide range of switched cocktails and learn more about the technique.

With the juices and flavours spirits are usually mixed with, instead being introduced into the spirit itself, the result is a shorter, boozier cocktail.

Using the same building blocks of flavour but in a different way, Ian believes this to add improved texture that aids flavour.

From adding coconut milk to white rum for a smooth coconut daiquiri, to a clarified blend of pineapple and lime juice for a punchier ‘Jungle Bird’ tiki drink, no cocktail is resistant to transformation with Ian’s innovative method.

McPherson was recently announced as Innovator of the Year 2020 by Imbibe Magazine for his invention and implementation of the ‘switching’ technique.

“I like to keep moving, and once I have mastered something and integrated it into my cocktail menus, then I am on to the next thing. I think it ultimately comes from a root of curiosity,” he added.