Whiskey Smash

Name: Whiskey Smash
Yield: makes 1 drink
Ingredients: 2 orange half-wheels; 1-finger pinch fresh mint leaves; 1/2 ounce homemade Mint Syrup (page 156); 2 ounces Michter’s Us No.1 Rye Whiskey; Seasonal Berries (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, currants, black currants, mulberries), for garnish; 1 mint sprig, for garnish

January 24, 2012

According to David Wondrich, the Whiskey Smash comes from the Baroque Age (see opposite page) of the cocktail. Obviously, it served as inspiration for our seasonal Ginger Smash cocktails, but it is in all its features a julep—the only difference being that the Smash has some ornamental fruits for garnish and is always shaken so that the mint is “smashed”—hence the name. From all the smashes in the Baroque Age, it appears that the Brandy Smash was the most popular (same drink, different base spirit—try it out for yourself), but somehow the whiskey version stuck with us. Maybe sampling Dale DeGroff’s rocking peach whiskey smash sealed the deal for us, or maybe it was just that we loved the term “smashed.” In any case, this is a very simple drink to make, and we suggest that you use our homemade Mint Syrup in place of simple syrup for a far more dimensional cocktail experience. This cocktail is one of the very few that contains no juice but nevertheless should be shaken and smashed.

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