The Bar Journal

Smoke is finding its way into cocktails in a growing variety of ways.

After making waves in the world of mixology a few years ago, the infusion of smoke into cocktails continues to grow, spurred on by the advent of new techniques and approaches to the use of smoky flavor.

Historically used in distillation techniques in Scotland and Mexico, adding smoke directly to a cocktail only took off in recent years – some say as a result of the growth in popularity of smoky mezcals and Scotch Whiskies. One of the most influential front-runners was Eben Freeman, who, after leaving molecular gastronomy hothouse ‘WD-50’, developed the cocktail list at ‘Tailor’, a groundbreaking New York City restaurant. The drink that skyrocketed his notoriety there was the ‘Waylon’, a bourbon and Coke in which the syrup of the cola is smoked over cherrywood, leaving a taste and smell reminiscent of a barbecue.
Another early name to garner attention was Daniel Shoemaker, co-owner of the Teardrop Cocktail Lounge in Portland, Oregon, for creating a technique for smoking ice cubes by exposing them to smoke and then refreezing.

There has since been a proliferation of the trend with mixologists using a growing bag of tricks. One simple method is to burn the ingredient (different kinds of woods, herbs, spices, flowers or blends) on a portable smoker or grill and put a cocktail glass upside down and trap the smoke in it until the drink is ready to be served. Another way commonly used is to put the spirit in a water bottle, put the smoke in the bottle, seal it and shake for a couple of minutes, blending the smoke and the spirit. The most elaborate of methods is probably smoke air, used by top mixologists such as Junior Merino, in which smoke is trapped into small air bubbles and placed on top of a cocktail.

As with all techniques, they don’t mean much without the application to interesting flavours and ingredients. While the most common spirits used in smoke-infused cocktails are Scotch whisky, tequila and mezcal, the list of components that are actually smoked or that add to a smoky flavour profile is ever-growing. Junior Merino’s ‘Cubico’ uses tobacco smoke along with tequila and grilled pineapple juice; the ‘Smoky Bramble’ utilizes lavender-smoke to compliment cranberry flavoured vodka and fresh blackberries; and Vincenzo Marianella of Copa d’Oro in Santa Monica California includes Dijon mustard in his gin-based ‘Sour Kraut’ cocktail to create a smokiness.

SALUTE!