Two things you may or may not know about today: today is International Cachaca Day, and one month and one day from now Adam Bernbach will be taking over at Proof - good news to people who were going to miss him after he left Bar Pilar.
Cachaca is a sugar cane based liquor from Brazil. It’s most commonly associatd with a drink known as a Caipirinha, which I can’t pronounce worth a damn, but it’s finding its way into more and more drinks these days.
I knew I wanted to make a cachaca drink for today but couldn’t decide who to associate it with. When I got further ideas about what to make with it, taking inspiration from the Pisco Sour, I remembered how Adam likes to work with rhum agricole, and in my humble and probably wrong opinion, there are some similarities there.
Not that it really matters, ’cause I’m making the drinks, and thus the rules, up as I go!
So, anyways, taking inspiration from last night’s TDN (Muddle!), and the Pisco Sour, I present The Bernbach.
The Bernbach
2 ounces cachaca (Boca Loca)
1 ounce lemon juice
1/2 ounce simple syrup
1/2 jalapeno pepper
1 egg white
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 star anise
Cut up the pepper and remove the white ribs and the seeds – leave a bit in if you like a bit of heat. Put into a mixing glass and add the cachaca, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Muddle the pepper, then add the egg white and dry shake for 30 seconds. Add ice and shake for another 1-2 minutes. Double strain into a glass and garnish by drizzling the Angostura bitters on the top then adding the star anise.
That's a decorative pattern, I didn't just "drizzle", heathens.
As soon as I cracked the shaker I knew this drink would be good – the aroma of the jalapeno just drifted out of there. I did a good job cleaning out the ribs and the seeds, so there was very little heat in the drink whatsoever.
There you have it – The Bernbach. I hope Adam likes this drink as much as I do!
[Fifth in a series of drinks named after bloggers, mixologists, and random others who'll hopefully be at Tales. The first post in the series is here.]
