Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup

Free Stuff: The PR rep for an Australian company that sells hibiscus flowers in syrup, that you put into drinks, offered to send me a sample and I gratefully accepted. They are just as the name suggests: a jar of Australian hibiscus flowers in simple syrup. They are meant to be placed in your glass, then pour in the alcohol.

Tasting: I brought them to my wine group meeting - we were tasting champagne that day, so I thought we could give them a while with the worst tasting bottle in the bunch (you never want to add mix-ins with good alcohol). They are very pretty and festive, but do not really offer much in the way of flavor, alone. When we poured in some of the syrup, we ended up with a sweet and tasty cocktail, that certainly helped our bottle of slightly corked champagne. I think these flowers will work best in a vodka martini - it is a good way to turn a strong drink into a user-friendly cocktail (as my friend calls, "a cocktail with training wheels).

Final Consensus: My friend didn't like the jar. He felt it was unrepresentative of what was inside. He suggest they package it in a tall, skinny jar, with the flowers stacked on top of each other to create a nicer presentation. I agree. I think these would be cute and festive at a party, but are not my bag.