Natasa Smitran, the bartender at The Four Seasons Palm Beach, moved to the United States from Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2018. After a short stint in Boston, she landed in Palm Beach, where she has been ever since.
As a bartender, Smitran gathers inspiration from her travels and her heritage—and is always looking for ways to surprise guests by putting a twist on old classics. Take, for example, her clarified white Negroni (pictured above), which adds skim milk to the recipe. “There are only a handful of cocktails you can truly describe as timeless and Negroni is one of them,” she explains, noting the cocktail’s mix of bitter and sweet flavors. “I was challenged to make a cocktail that contains all these notes but it is different and unique in its own way.”
For those confident enough to play bartender at home, try Smitran’s Negroni and her take on the Grasshopper, listed below.
Clarified White Negroni
1 1/2 oz Botanist gin
2 oz Campari
2 oz Sweet Vermont Antica
1 1/2 oz grapefruit juice
1 1/2 oz skim milk
Stir over ice until cold. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with provencal honey pearls.
The Grasshopper
Grasshopper
2 oz clarified mint and cocoa liquor
1 oz cream
0.5 oz lemon
0.25 oz Pernod
Stir ingredients over ice until cold. Garnish with white chocolate.