Ingredients
- ½ ounce Nikka Coffey grain whisky (or other Japanese whisky)
- ½ ounce Lagavulin (other Islay single malt)
- ½ ounce ginger syrup (recipe below)
- ½ ounce honey water (1:1 honey and water)
- ½ ounce yuzu juice
- 1 egg white
- 2 dashes plum bitters
- American white oak chips and dried orange wheel for garnish
Combine all ingredients in a shaker and dry shake for 30 seconds. Add ice and shake again. Place wood chips on a plate and light with a torch. Cover with snifter for about 20 seconds to trap the smoke inside. Strain the cocktail into the glass and garnish with orange wheel.
Ginger Syrup
- 1 cup sugar
- ¾ cup water
- 1 cup freshly grated ginger
Combine sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add ginger and continue to heat, bringing syrup to a light boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and steep in the covered pan for one hour. Strain into a container and seal. Keep refrigerated for up to two weeks.
Background: Created by James Shearer, global beverage director for Zuma Restaurants and featured in the Whisky Advocate, dated winter of 2019. Mr. Shearer wrote, “This twist on the Penicillin is a complex combination of smoky and citrus,” Shearer says. “The honey, yuzu, and egg whites lend sweet frothy notes, while smoke from wood fire seasons the glass, making for a layered sip.”
