London’s finest whisky cocktails
‘WHISKY BLAZER’ AT THE RIB ROOM, JUMEIRAH CARLTON TOWER HOTEL, KNIGHTSBRIDGE
The classic cocktail for frosty nights, the fiery Blazer – famous for the arcing blue flame created as the burning whisky is poured back and forth between two glasses – will be a draw at the Rib Room’s soon-to-open cigar terrace. It’s here made from Glenmorangie Astar single malt, aged sweet Antica Formula Vermouth and Benedictine, and served in a high coupe glass with a handle. www.jumeirah.com
‘PANACEA’ AT THE WORSHIP STREET WHISTLING SHOP, SHOREDITCH
Shoreditch’s Victorian-chic den of alcoholic adventure takes the molecular route with this variation on the Whisky Sour. The base cocktail – lemon juice and sugar mixed with whisky, in this case Asyla whisky from niche blender Compass Box – gains the addition of a “lavender shrub”. This involves vacuum sealing some cider vinegar and lavender in a sous vide water bath, before adding honey. Finished off with a sprinkling of dehydrated sage dust – but of course. www.whistlingshop.com
‘MORNING GLORY FIZZ’ AT THE ZETTER TOWNHOUSE, CLERKENWELL
Nothing to do with the Morning Glory cocktail, this Prohibition-era favourite is a more exotic and enlivening concoction. The key is the addition of two drops of absinthe to a base cocktail of blended whisky – in this case Chivas Regal 12 – lemon juice and sugar syrup. Look out too for the Sterling Soda, incorporating homemade barley water to a similar base cocktail – a ruggedly rural mixture. www.thezettertownhouse.com