db Drinks: Scout

db’s Lucy Shaw heads to seasonal cocktail specialist Scout in Shoreditch for strawberry ferments, a caramelised parsnip and brown butter Old Fashioned, and spicy sobresada on sourdough.

Matt Whiley behind the bar at Scout

The concept: Known as ‘The Talented Mr Fox’, Matt Whiley is one of the most exciting and creative mixologists working in London today. In charge of the drinks at Peg + Patriot bar at the Town Hall Hotel in Bethnal Green, he also curates the cocktail lists for a number of top restaurants including Fera at Claridge’s.

Having long dreamt of his own London venture, earlier this year Whiley branched out with Scout, his first solo project where he rips up the rule book and takes an almost evangelical approach to cocktails, working only with local, seasonal ingredients.

The décor: The interiors of Scout are as stripped down as a Liam Payne track. It feels a bit like you’ve walked into a 30-something’s east London bachelor pad, with its concrete walls, wooden seating and black upholstery.

An artist’s impression of Pink Floyd’s iconic Darker Side of the Moon album cover adds interest to one of the walls but there is little to delight the eye here, leaving you free to pay full attention to both your drinking buddy and the cocktails.

The cocktails: Taking the local, seasonal concept to extremes, Whiley has to find alternatives to cocktail essentials like lemons and limes. So far, sea buckthorn is proving a great substitute for lemon, and he’s managed to find a pineapple grower in Cornwall.

Keen to move consumers on from choosing a drink by spirit category, Whiley has done away with any mention of alcohol brands on Scout’s menu, meaning the drinks read like dishes.

The ‘asparagus’ cocktail, for example, is listed as being a blend of white asparagus and caramelised white chocolate, while the ‘apple’ combines apple marigold, lemon balm and verjus.

This is a brave move in alcohol-obsessed London, though Whiley says that most people have embraced the menu with very few questions asked.

To save time, all 12 of the cocktails are made in batches – don’t come to Scout if you’re after flaring and showmanship from the bartenders – Scout is too cool for theatrics.

Signature sips: There is so much to like on Whiley’s debut menu it’s hard to single out specific cocktails, but both the Hay and the Parsnip were particularly wonderful. The former is sweet, nutty and lightly sparkling and features hay, popcorn shoot and meadowsweet – drinking it makes you want to frolic in hay bails while drinking cider in the sunshine with a childhood sweetheart.

The Parsnip meanwhile, is a twist on an Old Fashioned made with caramelised parsnip-infused Woodford Reserve and brown butter. Served with a giant Scout-branded ice cube, it slips down easily, offering the perfect mix of sweet and savoury, recalling honeyed parsnips on Christmas Day.

In addition to bottled cocktails, Scout also specialises in ‘ferments’ – pre-batched, wine-inspired drinks made with summer fruits.

On the go at the moment are strawberry and lemon balm, which was surprisingly sophisticated; a semi-sparkling apple and hay ferment; and pear, birch and honey.

The food: The cocktails are the star of the show at Scout but the bar offers a solid selection of snacks to help mop up the alcohol. Among the best are slivers of truffle salami on sourdough with pickled celeriac.

Another must order is the sobresada (a soft, spreadable, spicy sausage) on toast with sunshine yellow grated egg yolks.

Cheese fiends should definitely order the platter of English cheeses if only for the smoked apple purée, which is so addictive we asked for more on two occasions.

Who to know: The man himself, Matt Whiley, who can be found behind the bar most nights. He was sadly absent on our visit, but we were well looked after by his ebullient colleague, Charles Roche.

Don’t leave without: Asking to see the ‘test kitchen’ in the basement – tech geeks will go wild for Whiley’s kit, which includes a centrifuge and a rotary evaporator.

Last word: Scout is at the forefront of cocktail innovation in the UK, so is well worth a visit if you’re keen to try some of the most experimental and delicious drinks being made in London at the moment. It’s also a great opportunity to get closer to obscure British ingredients, from knotweed and sea buckthorn to acacia and apple marigold.

You don’t need to be a cocktail nut to appreciate the bar – it’s also a great spot for a relaxed post-work drink with a friend, and the bartenders are happy to whip up classic cocktails for those who aren’t so keen to go down the local, seasonal route, but to do so would be missing out on the magic.