Oriol Castro presents an alcohol-free spirit developed at Disfrutar, which has essential aromas from the Pyrenean country of Andorra, at Andorra Taste

Having been present at the inception of the Andorra Taste international mountain cuisine conference, Oriol Castro has returned for its fourth edition with an array of gastronomic innovations developed specifically for the occasion. “We like to come to these events with our hands full. The first time we participated in Andorra Taste, we brought dishes from our restaurant. This time, however, we wanted to share some ideas with the chefs who have made Andorra a gastronomic powerhouse," he said.

He began his presentation by acknowledging the current status of Andorran gastronomy and congratulating those responsible, ‘both the authorities and the professionals who have participated in this process’. In a presentation that was longer than usual but valuable from start to finish, he presented a range of innovations based on Andorran products and identity that had been created specifically for the conference.

He took to the stage at the Auditori Prat de Roure in Escaldes-Engordany, accompanied by Carles Bonnin. “Carles is a mixologist, alchemist, and the creator of La Destilateca, a spirits research and creativity project that we have been working on for some time at Disfrutar,” Oriol Castro introduced him. The challenge this time was complicated because it involved capturing the essence and aromas of Andorra in a bottle while ensuring the resulting spirit was alcohol-free. To begin working on Andorra, we first studied the territory and its resources thoroughly. Our main conclusion was that Andorra is water, so we decided to create a liquid representation of it: a drink. In this case, it is a drink in which, through a distillation process that removes the ethanol, we have extracted the aromas that remind us of Andorra.”

“Terroir del Desglaç” (Terroir of the Thaw), the name of the distillate, encapsulates everything from the smoke of chimneys, evoked by smoked green pine cones, to elements such as moss, mushrooms, fennel, liquorice, juniper and pine blossom. It is a drink that can be marketed and combined with soft drinks or drunk on its own.

'Terroir del Desglaç' was not the only gift that Castro and the Disfrutar team had prepared for Andorra. They also presented different types of garum, including one made with local trout and one with trout and ham (a nod to 'Andorran trout'), as well as a hare-based garum where the taste of the animal's blood is prominent. Other fermented products prepared for the presentation included mushroom soybeans. “Making fermented products is interesting not only because of what they contribute to cooking, but also because of the savings and reduction in waste,” he said.

Inspired by game, which is emblematic of Andorran cuisine, the Disfrutar team has developed fresh sausages such as hare butifarra. Castro even presented two desserts: one was a crystalline biscuit with a heart of stalactites and stalagmites; the other was a frozen stalagmite coated in white honey, pollen, herbs and sugar, designed to be sucked. It was a true display of seriousness, an innovative spirit and generosity. He explained the recipes in detail and encouraged Andorran chefs to use whatever they wanted. ‘We wanted to share our work and our vision for traditional Andorran cuisine in celebration of our return to this stage,’ he concluded.