My family has a tradition of getting together Superbowl weekend to enjoy food, drink, and shenanigans, and as most things over the last year, we had a virtual hang. My libation creation was a KC Barbecue-inspired tiki cocktail. This sweet, smoky, spicy, and tangy concoction is shaken up with aged rum, apple cider, sweet vermouth, tamarind concentrate, barrel-aged maple syrup, angostura bitters, and house-made smoked cinnamon and rum extracted chile tinctures. The ALTSS is then finished with a little oak-smoke and topped with a crispy strip of vegan bacon.
Although KC might have lost the big dance, "at least there's still sauce!"
At Least There's Still Sauce
2.5 oz aged rum
0.5 oz sweet vermouth
2.5 oz apple cider
Bar spoon barrel-aged maple syrup
Bar spoon tamarind concentrate
4.5-5.5 ml smoked cinnamon tincture
4.5-5.5 ml rum extracted chile tincture
4 dashes Angostura Bitters
Crispy slice of bacon, for garnish (I used a seitan-based option)
Oak cubes (for smoking)
Instructions: add ingredients together and shake with ice. Strain into glass or a secondary vessel suitable for smoking. Gently smoke with a few oak cubes (in a well ventilated area), add the crisped bacon, and enjoy!
Tinctures - I keep both of these in stock, as they can be used in a variety of cocktail applications.
Smoked Cinnamon:
~1 stick/ 100 ml vodka at 40% ABV
Broken into a few pieces, gently dry-roast cinnamon in a pan on Medium heat for a few minutes, tossing occasionally for even color formation. The sticks should be at the cusp of being burnt. This will impart a slight smokiness to the tincture.
Once cooled, add into the vodka. Allow to extract for 5-7 days before removing the sticks.
Chile Rum:
1 ancho/ 250 ml light rum at 40-45% ABV
Steep for 7-10 days before removing the chile