Bam Velvet

The story

Around Bam, in the southeast of Kerman province, date palms crowd the oasis around the great mud-brick citadel, Arg-e Bam, which has watched over the town for centuries. Its Mazafati dates are soft, dark and almost chocolatey, among the most prized in Iran. Here they meet dark rum and ruby port in a velvety, cream-shaken dessert drink, the kind you serve at the end of a long dinner, with something sweet from Kerman on the side.

Method

1. Stir the date syrup into the rum in the shaker until dissolved.
2. Add the port, cream and ice.
3. Shake hard for 15 seconds.
4. Strain into a small chilled coupe.
5. Garnish, if you like, with chopped pistachio on part of the rim.

How it tastes

Plush and creamy, with toffee-like date, dark rum’s molasses notes and the red-fruit warmth of port.

Persian taste: shirin (sweet), charb (rich)

Pair it with

• Food: Serve after dinner; it is a dessert in itself.
• Sweet: Kolompeh, Kerman’s date-filled cookie scented with cardamom.
• Snack: One Mazafati date from Bam

Variations

Dairy-free velvet

Replace the cream with 20 ml oat-based barista cream.

Brandy velvet

Use brandy instead of dark rum for a lighter, fruitier drink.

Spiced velvet

Use the date-and-cardamom version of P13.

Balancing tips

• Always dissolve the date syrup in the rum first; otherwise it sinks and clumps.
• Use fresh, very cold cream and serve immediately.
• If too sweet, reduce the date syrup to 7.5 ml.

Allergens

• Milk
• Sulfites (port)
• Optional pistachio garnish (tree nut)
• Contains alcohol. Please drink responsibly.

Development notes

• Status: draft recipe, not yet taste-tested.
• Check texture, stability and sweetness with the chosen date syrup.