Bobby Burns Day Cocktails

Another Robert Burns Day has come and gone.  To those of you who are unfamiliar with Scottish history, I’m going to give yall a little back story.  If you can bear with me for just a moment while I geek out on some cocktail history, I promise I’ll get right to telling you how to make some delicious cocktails to put in your body.  That work? Solid.

Most great drinks have a story.  The Bobby Burns is no exception.  Robert Burns, the man, is historically and culturally significant to the Scots for his writings and poems.  In fact, he is widely regarded as the national voice of poetry for Scotland, Scotland’s favourite son, and was a notable pioneer of the Romantic movement which originated towards the end of the 18th century.  Which is all well and good, but what does that have to do with drinking?  Well as we all know the national drink of Scotland bears its name, and Mr. Burns had some very choice words on the subject. “Oh thou, my muse! guid auld Scotch drink!”

The original Bobby Burns is an absolute classic cocktail featuring Scotch as the main note.  With this in mind, I’ve crafted a menu of sorts starting with the original and working my way out.  Each drink features whisky or whiskey in some way {yes, there’s a difference, which I will explain when I have more room} and in turn pairs exceptionally well with the chocolates provided us by our friends at L.A. Burdick; who also felt inspired to create a special assortment in celebration of Bobby with his beloved Scotch as the foundation.

 

 

 The Bobby Burns {classic}

I like to call this the Scotch enthusiast’s Manhattan, as the classic prep lets the whisky be the main note while the peripheral ingredients serve to mellow the inherent harsh undertones of the whisky itself.  I chose to pair this recipe with both the Springbank and the Whiskey Honey Truffle.  Which works quite well because, as you go to pull the drink from the glass you catch the deep aromas of oak and leather.  Then soon after, just when your palatte is prepping to be slammed with all the burn it has grown to associate with Scotch, Drambuie steps in and mellows the vibe with its beautiful notes of wild honey and dried fruit.  Similarly the Springbank begins with strong dark chocolate, that gives way to notes of honey and pear.  The Whiskey Honey seems to be equal parts of blend American whiskey and honey which really serves to compliment all parts of the cocktail.

• 2oz 12yr Aberlour Scotch Whisky
• .75oz Dolin Rouge Vermouth or another Italian Red Vermouth
• .25oz Drambuie
• 1 dash of Angostura Aromatic Bitters
  ~ add ingredients to a mixing glass and stir until chilled
  ~ strain into either a martini glass up OR into a rocks glass with 1 large cube

Prep Notes: Folks will try and get you to replace the Drambuie with Benedictine.  Which is perfectly acceptable.  It’s just a bit too sweet for my taste, and I don’t plan on recommending something to yall I don’t find agreeable.

Bobby’s Burning

Personally, a breakfast following a long night usually calls for a little “hair of the dog that bit me”.  Among my favorite remedies is an Irish coffee and it’s with that drink in mind I have created this cocktail.  It has all the makings of a perfect breakfast: eggs to fuel the body, dark roast coffee to jog the memory, peppers to reignite the system, and whisky to invigorate the spirit.  I’ve found that the Lagavulin Truffle best accommodates those flavors as the whisky for which it is named is the boldest, smokiest, and most invigorating selection of its kind.  Lagavulin is among the peatiest scotches money can buy; eclipsed only by choices like Laphroaig and only in that category.  The inherent smoke, tobacco, and chocolate notes of both the Laphroaig, Lagavulin, and coffee couldn’t work better together.

• 1.5oz 10yr Laphroaig Scotch Whisky
• 1oz French Pressed Dark Roast {chilled or room temp}
• .25oz Drambuie
• .25oz 1:1 Honey Simple Syrup
• 1 Egg White
• .25 tsp Minced Serrano Pepper {fresh}
  ~ add ingredients to a cocktail shaker first without ice and shake, this will break apart the proteins in the egg and allow for better consistency throughout your finished cocktail
  ~ after shaking for about 10 seconds, add ice and shake until almost too cold to hold {30 seconds}
  ~ using a mesh strainer, double strain into a chilled martini glass

Prep Notes: 1:1 Honey Simple Syrup means you’re taking an equal measurement of honey to hot water and mixing them together to form a syrup.  The addition of water makes it easier to incorporate sugars into a drinks without residual particulate collecting on the inside of your mixing tin and it generally aids in making your drinks more consistent.

Catharsis Fizz

Summer is coming.  Soon you’ll have a hankering for drinks that are often more refreshing than not.  I know what you’re thinking, Scotch and refreshing are not words that you would readily associate with one another.  I would have to agree with you on that point, which is why I reached for a Rye here.  However, the Templeton Rye Whiskey featured in this drink has heavy cedar notes which are not unlike Highland malt scotch so I felt it was an appropriate pairing.  The currant in the Talisker Bon Bon and the fig within the Glenfarclas made these both obvious pairings as the dry cherry flavor of the Campari lets those flavors shine just before it subsides and you experience the wood soaked goodness of the whiskey. By definition, Catharsis is the process of releasing and thereby providing relief from strong or repressed emotions.  If you just so happen to find yourself in need of relief and some unwinding, reach for one of these.

• 2oz Templeton Rye Whiskey
• .5oz Dolin Rouge Vermouth or another Italian Red Vermouth
• .25oz Campari
• .5oz 1:1 Honey Simple Syrup
• Pinch of Oregano {fresh}
• 1.5oz Tonic Water
  ~ pour the tonic water, over ice, into the base of a tall slender glass
  ~ add other ingredients to a cocktail shaker and shake for about 15 seconds
  ~ using a mesh strainer, double strain into the glass atop the tonic water
  ~ garnish with a thick lemon twist and spring of fresh oregano

Prep Notes: When looking for the perfect glassware to house a fizz, get yourself a Collins glass.  It allows the effervescence of the fizzy water {tonic or club} more room to travel upwards which will keep it from flattening out much too quickly.

The Red Beret

Since we began this journey as a review and experiment on the Bobby Burns, I figured we ought to get back to the basics on this last drink.  In fact I used the exact same portions of the different spirits, with just a few small tweaks.  However, you’d be surprised just how vastly different the end results are.  I’ve named this drink the Red Beret as I reached for Lillet Rouge, a French fortified Aperitif Wine, as opposed to Drambuie as my peripheral ingredient.  The Lillet has a powerful bouquet of orange blossom, ripe berries, and vanilla which accents the underlying vanilla flavor of the Macallan nicely.  Not pictured is the Macallan Bon Bon whose multiple layers of decadent pistachio and almond are so beautifully and effortlessly intertwined with the whisky, it’ll leave you wondering why you hadn’t made the connection before. Also, the dry pop of the vermouth and the “Sage Slap” allows the nut flavors to come into the forefront.

• 2oz 10yr Macallan Scotch Whisky
• .75oz Dolin Dry Vermouth or Similar Dry Vermouth
• .25oz Lillet Rouge
• 1 Small Sprig of Sage
  ~ add ingredients, except sage, to a mixing glass and stir until chilled
  ~ strain into either a martini OR a coupe glass
  ~ cut a silver dollar sized coin of skin off an orange and flame it above the drink, before rimming the glass
  ~ “Sage Slap”: above the drink, take the sage in the palm of your non-dominant hand, clap your hands together once to release the oils in the herb and place in the glass

Prep Notes: To flame an orange, making sure not to get any meat, cut a thin coin of orange peel off the skin of a fresh orange.  Holding the pith side up, wave the skin of the orange over an open flame.  Then squeeze the orange, igniting the citrus oil.  It gives the drink a caramelized citrus flavor and also it just looks awesome.

Whether you spent this particular Burns Sunday alone prepping for the week ahead, relaxing with friends, or spending some quality time with your main squeeze; I hope you were able to enjoy it as much as I did.  If you would like to try any or all of these drinks, but lack the means in your home bar, I have some good news for you.  I will be personally offering every single one of my odes to Bobby Burns on my personal bar menu at Dovetail this coming Wednesday 1/28/2015.

If you would like to learn about how best to dress on one such lovely Scottish occasion, take a gander at Anna Mae Kersey’s post featuring new looks at Scottish classic styles.

Special thanks to Jessica Whitley Photography for such a fun and professional shoot as well as to Molly for allowing me the opportunity to grow and share my cocktail knowledge with yall.