This Smoky Whiskey Cocktail is Just What the Doctor Ordered

This recipe is part of our premium cocktail recipe series:

If you took our advice and hunted down the best rare top-shelf spirits, you’d have a liquor cabinet to rival any collector’s by now. But where to go from there? The indomitable Penicillin cocktail is a great way to use one of the more solitary standout bottles in your collection, the Octomore 10.1 Single Malt Scotch Whisky. With complexity, body and incredible intensity, you’ll feel like an instant bartender with this new-classic.

New York City is arguably the centre of the bartending world and countless innovative beverages have flowed from the bars of its many renowned venues onto menus worldwide. The Penicillin is one such cocktail that traversed the globe in just a few short years after its invention.

A favourite of bartenders and scotch lovers alike, the Penicillin combines the sweet spice of ginger with rich blended scotch, honey and tart lemon juice, tied together by the smoky intensity of peated scotch float. The result is a warming, rich and enlivening swill with an intense aroma and unforgettable first impression.

A little Octomore 10.1 Single Malt Scotch Whisky goes a long way in this drink. Its incredible intensity makes it the perfect floater and best of all, only a wee dram is needed to make a knockout cocktail. As for the scotch in the body of the drink, any mellow blended scotch will do. Naturally, we recommend a premium and approachable number, the Dewars 25 Year Blended Scotch for its full texture and smooth honey overtones.

The Perfect Penicillin Cocktail Recipe

Ingredients

50 mL Dewars 25 Year Blended Scotch
30 mL fresh lemon juice
~20 mL honey-ginger syrup
10 mL Octomore 10.1 Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Lemon peel or candied ginger slice

Method

Honey-Ginger Syrup - combine ½ cup honey, ½ cup water and 7 cm piece of ginger, peeled and sliced into saucepan. Bring to boil and let simmer for five minutes. Strain and allow syrup to cool.
Combine blended scotch, honey-ginger syrup and lemon juice into cocktail shaker and fill with ice.
Shake for around 20 seconds.
Strain into chilled rocks glass over a large ice cube.
Gently add Octomore using measuring spoon to float on top of cocktail.
Garnish with lemon peel or candied ginger.

Working on your bar skills? Check out our Premium Cocktail Series for more recipes.

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