There's a surefire way to tell if you're in a bartender's flat - they'll have a lot of gin. At the last count, I had two different brands of genever on hand - which is two brands of genever more than a lot of Scottish liquor stores. This abundance brings with it a problem, unless you develop a taste for gin as a general condiment and so much of my downtime is spent doing labwork. When I say "lab", really I mean "kitchen", and "work"? We'd be safer calling that "faffing around" because, along with all the gin, your average bartender will accumulate a decent collection of stuff.

Like leaf gelatin, which I picked up ages ago and used maybe one time. I decided to dig an old recipe I'd picked up from Bramble's Jason Scott for solid Gin & Tonic cubes but somehow, I'd run out of citric acid. What are the chances? At any rate, it was a start and one thing led to another and...

Gin & Elderflower Jelly

3 sheets leaf gelatin
75ml gin (Blackwood's 2006 Vintage)
75ml elderflower cordial

Place the gelatin in a bowl of cold water and leave for 4-5 mins to soak. Remove the sheets and squeeze out any excess water. Transfer to a small pan and place over a low heat until the gelatin completely melts. Remove from heat and let the melted gelatin cool. Slowly add the gin and elderflower cordial, stirring constantly. Transfer to a mould and place in the fridge for 2-3 hours to set.

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The thing about a gin-based dessert is that it ends up being pretty robust. As the jelly melts in the mouth, there's a pleasant floral flavour from the combination of the coriander and water mint in the Blackwood's with the elderflower, but there's also a big hit of booze on the finish. It's not unpleasant but it's a reminder that this is not jelly for kids. Needing something to temper the strength, I turned to gin's natural partner.

Lemon Tonic Granita

2 lemons
200ml tonic water (Fever Tree)
100g caster sugar

Using a zester, remove the zest from the lemons and combine with the sugar in a seal-able container. Shake thoroughly to mix the two and leave to infuse for 30 mins. Combine the lemon/sugar mix with the tonic in a mixing bowl and stir until the sugar is fully dissolved. Transfer this mixture into a shallow metal tray and place in the freezer for 2 hours. At this point, remove from the freezer and run a fork through the mixture, creating texture. Replace in the freezer; repeat this process every half hour or so until the granita is thoroughly frozen.

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Gin and tonic is, of course, one of those iconic combinations like Ebony and Ivory, or the San Jose Sharks and postseason failure. It's so good, you could eat it.