Bella Porcile, known as mixedbybella, is the bartender who turns the forest’s pantry into magical cocktails. After years behind bars from London to Åre and summers on Ulvön, Gotland and Öland, she has made nature’s ingredients and foraging a natural part of her everyday craft. She works broadly: leading workshops, doing guest shifts, helping restaurants develop menus, and creating cocktail recipes.
Foraging means gathering edible plants, flowers, berries and mushrooms directly from nature and harvesting them in a sustainable way. In the cocktail world, it’s about letting the taste of a place shine in the glass — something Bella does with a blend of craftsmanship, curiosity and deep respect for the seasons.
Her work is as much storytelling as it is drink: from the scents of meadowsweet and fireweed to a lavender-scented margarita that became a talking point, and even a sour grog served in a fermented-herring tin — humor and nature in the same glass.
Here Bella shares a recipe from her wild drinks:
Violet and Lavender Margarita Milk Punch
Glass: Riedel Sour Optic (a crystal glass that keeps the chill and lifts aromas; popular in bars worldwide and among home bartenders).
Ingredients (2 drinks)
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6 cl lavender and butterfly-pea infused tequila
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4 cl violet liqueur
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4 cl lavender syrup
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6 cl lemon juice
Method
1. Measure all ingredients into a jar. Pour the mixture into 8 cl milk (it should curdle) and let it rest for about an hour.
2. Line another jar with a coffee filter or fine cloth and strain slowly; the first drops can be cloudy — place a small glass underneath to catch them, then switch once the liquid runs clear.
3. Take the glasses from the freezer and dust lightly with lavender salt using a tea strainer. Serve 10 cl per drink over a large piece of clear ice in a cocktail glass. Garnish with sugared dried lavender (or fresh) and a pansy or viola.
If you want to dive deeper into wild techniques, syrups and seasonality, you will find more recipes in Bella’s acclaimed book Vilda drinkar — awarded by the Swedish Academy of Culinary Arts and Meal Science and now in a new edition.
Follow Bella’s day-to-day and recipes on Instagram: @mixedbybella.
A big thank-you to Bella for sharing her story — and for the recipe that inspires us to let nature take its place in the glass.
Photo: Kim Sjöberg
