Grandmom’s Curry. Miso. Apple Pie. Tomato Tomato. Key Lime Pie.

No, we are not playing a word game revolving around food.

These are all names of cocktails at South Goa’s newest bar, The Lab. Each cocktail’s name is interlaced with a meaningful story, typically indicating the ingredients, provenance or the ethos of the drink inside the glass.

Tucked away inside the new boutique hotel, Amaraanth, near Fatrade Beach, with access via a muddy off-road, which in my opinion, is still such a charming way to arrive. I was expecting to find a test and research centre, with a centrifuge, test tube racks and perhaps, a science experiment scenario. After all, I was told this would now be the Countertop India (a Goa-based company led by Pankaj Balachandran, focussing on creative cocktails and sustainability) team’s new R&D hub. Surprisingly, I was led into a sleek, intimate space with low-mood lighting, not more than a total seating for 20 and a bar with a standout, undulating light feature.

The Red Amaraanth | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

“We’re evolving beyond a traditional R&D facility into an experiential drinking room. The space and programme are thoughtfully designed, focussing primarily on the seasonal bounty of Goa,” explains Pankaj Balachandran, CEO, Countertop India.

And experiential it was. We continued with a tasting from The Lab’s cocktail menu, a fine amalgam of meticulously mixed libations, each one awash with evocative narratives. I started my journey with the signature Red Amaraanth. I will have to admit that living in Goa now, has converted me into a huge fan of the local tambdi bhaji or red spinach. With leaves from their own small parcel of land and some from nearby bhaji sellers, this one remained resolutely my favourite cocktail, up until the end. The gin and vermouth smoothly intermingling, with a sudden burst from the in-house pickled onion gin, serves up a surprise tartness.

The Lab at Amaraanth | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Next, I move on to another inventive concoction, this time a savoury one. Grandmom’s Curry has all the makings of a great Goan curry, the tequila smoothly mixed in with tomato, coriander, tamarind, ginger, with the coconut milk adding a satiny restraint and balance. The next cocktail, Hotel Lobby, a nod to Pankaj’s old hotelier days at Taj Mansingh, New Delhi, is inspired by the fragrance of fresh blooms. This aromatic cocktail combines fragrant tea sourced from a boutique tea store in Fontainhas, and gin, offset by the heady perfume of jasmine, kaffir and marigold. Caper Berry Smash is another surprise, with pisco and olive oil lending a silky mouthfeel, the caper leaves giving the drink a different dimension.

What is a cocktail journey without the comfort of a good old-fashioned? Miso offers a medley of flavours, with whisky at its heart, and a clever coming together of savoury miso and chocolate. The miso I am told, is from Goa’s Brown Koji Boy. In an interesting post-pandemic success story, Prachet Sancheti aka ‘Brown Koji Boy’, a cricket analyst with a creative culinary vein, began making koji (a key ingredient in soy sauce and miso, it is made with cooked rice and or soya beans that have gone through fermentation process)at his villa in Goa, straight out of a converted cooler.

Key Lime Pie | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

“The caper leaves are all sourced from Ishka Farms in Tamil Nadu,” chimes in Pankaj, as he goes on to explain the ethos of The Lab in detail, and relationships with local vendors is the beating heart of the place. “We believe our sustainable, closed-loop approach, not only benefits the environment but also enriches the guest experience by offering fresh, local flavours and innovative drinks. We’ll continue to evolve this approach, incorporating seasonal bounty into our upcoming menus.”

The Lab offers a few non-alcoholic options that highlight innovative flavours like their zero-proof coconut drink, featuring coconut water and Indian sarsaparilla, an indigenous ingredient.

Food here does not disappoint either, as the menu is designed by Ritu Dalmia, and hence, has everything from a mezze platter to a seafood marinara pizza.

Isn’t The Lab, with its quiet elegance, quite on the opposite end of the spectrum from his other recent venture, Boilermaker, I ask Pankaj curiously. “Yes. I feel like a split personality; this is certainly the more refined side of me, while the other is more relaxed and rugged.”

The Lab is at Fatrade Beach Road, Goa. A meal for two costs ₹2,500.