The final cocktail for my Whiskey Sour Challenge (see my previous two posts) is a cool cocktail that I got some direction for from my friend and former bartender Christopher Dobey. It involves a really cool award-winning whiskey that is rather unique and definitely accolade worthy.
Honored as being "Fresh as the Colorado snow, smoother than the rocks of the river flow", the hand-distilled 291 Colorado Fresh Whiskey won the People's Choice Award at the Breckenridge Craft Spirits Festival in 2015. Here's Why. This is a pretty amazing whiskey. Made by Distillery 291 in Colorado Springs this whiskey is an un-aged corn whiskey that is mellowed with Aspen charcoal of all things. What results is a slightly sour flavor with a smoky woodsy flavor that really goes down clean an smooth with the charcoal flavor sneaking up on the finish. What's nice about Fresh is that the flavor is intense on its own as it hits the tongue an just explodes with tartness, slight sweetness and smoky depth all whole just flashing over the tastebuds with lovely ease.
Fresh in a perfect whiskey for mixing cocktails and was developed with that intent in mind. The notes of Fresh are pretty perfect for a whiskey sour. The sour edge and the charred undertones to balance out the sweet are great for a The 'Real Men Drink Pink' Sour.
The 'Real Men Drink' Pink Sour
2 ounces 291 Colorado Fresh Whiskey
5-7 shakes Peychaud's Aromatic Cocktail Bitters
1 ounce Simple Syrup
1/2 ounce Fresh squeezed Lemon Juice
1/2 ounce Fresh squeezed Lime Juice
1 Egg
Add the white the of egg to a shakers and shake until the egg white foams up or meringues. Then add the Fresh Whiskey, the bitters, simple syrup, lemon juice and lime juice. Shake up again and double strain over ice into a whisky glass. Optional garnish with a couple extra dashes of bitters.
This was a surpassingly good drink. I consulted with Christopher on this drink and suggested the Peychaud's since he thought the clear color of the Fresh Whiskey might make the drink un whiskey sour-like in appearance. So it became a bit of a whiskey sour and a Boston sour mash up and the result as great. The bitters added a spicy fragrant sweetness. It's a light-colored drink but pack a delicious punch. The sweet and spicy plays up nicely against the smoky sour whiskey. The egg once again adds some textural depth to the cocktail.
This has been a really great challenge for me in exploring the versatility of expansive flavor profile of whiskey. Stop by your finer wine, spirit and alcohol retailers and check out 291 Colorado Fresh Whiskey and as always please remember to drink responsibly.
www.FreshWhiskey.com
