Requiem and Reposado

It’s 8:45am on Thursday morning and I am chasing the lingering remnants of tequila and cigar from my mouth with organic breakfast cereal.  Normally this would be evidence of another long Wednesday night followed by a tired, self-loathing rest of the week, but in this case, it was actually just an unfortunate consequence of my first venture into the world of infusing alcohols.  I’ve been informed by my co-blogger that he will be putting up a post on the intricacies of this process in the near future, but for now, I’ll focus on my first attempt at this process - cutting a three year old bone dry Cohiba in half and putting it into a mason jar with the dregs of a bottle of Cuervo. 

I had prepared this nutritional nightmare Wednesday night after a moderately boozy dinner with the firm.  At the time, I had thought I would have at least a week before I had to deal with this experiment in any way, but not uncharacteristically, I was wrong.  Apparently, tobacco is a flavour that can be intensely infused into alcohol over night.  Not knowing this, I woke up on Thursday and walked into the kitchen proud of the fact that I was reasonably rested and almost completely unhungover only to face a mason jar that practically screamed deal with me now or throw me away later when you have more energy.  The golden amber tequila had turned into a dark mahogany with two bloated and partially dissolved pieces of cigar floating limply at the surface.  While the idea of tasting this abomination struck me as about the most repulsive thing I could contemplate at that time of the day, with some minor encouragement from Schizz, I pulled out a small spoon, opened the jar, and prepared to bite the proverbial bullet for my new chosen passion.

Surprisingly, my impression upon opening the jar was actually quite positive.  The acrid smell of the tequila had slightly mellowed and had picked up pronounced tobacco notes.  Slightly more intrigued, I pulled out the two tequila logged cigar halves and scooped a few mahogany coloured drops on my spoon.  Closing my eyes and checking my gag reflex, I lifted the spoon and put it in my mouth.  To put it mildly, the flavour was intense.  I could clearly taste the distinctive earthiness of the cigar and almost immediately felt the tingling of a nicotine buzz building on my tongue.  However, but for the fact it was before 9am, it wasn’t that bad.  While it needed to be cut with another tequila to mellow the flavour, the experiment was actually a mild success and I had captured the essence of smoking a cigar after shooting tequila, or closer to my heart, the flavour of the end to a late night out with my former roommate and current failed Iranian thought leader.*

Spirit:

Cohiba infused Jose Cuervo Especial  

Impression:  Like having Che put a cigar out on your face at 4:00 am in a Tijuana nightclub.

The Cocktail:

The Ahmad Cocktail

As with a well worn piece of clothing or a favourite dish, a drink can be something more when it tells a story.  The Ahmad Cocktail tells a story that looks to the past while giving a nod to the future.  As alluded to, after a solid shift with Ahmad it was rare that you could escape a shot of tequila and a cigar before turning in at the end of the night (particularly when that night was Three Drink Thursday and you failed to stop at the prescribed limit).  It became a ritual of sorts - one last bad decision to tie a knot on the many more before it. 

While this particular combination of alcohol and tobacco is more commonly found in an impromptu ashtray than a sophisticated cocktail, it’s actually a rather fun way to introduce many of the best elements of bourbon into tequila.  The tobacco flavour works to mellow the tequila and to lend it a little of the smoky, muddy strength that defines good bourbon.  After deciding on a bourbon based cocktail to try out my new infused spirit, I saw only one way I could go: the Old Fashioned. The Old Fashioned is one of my favourite cocktails, but more importantly, it was introduced to me by my current roommate and co-blogger Schizz.  Interestingly enough, the Old Fashioned was also Schizz’s first real introduction into fine cocktails.  Now, that is the story I wanted for this blog’s first original cocktail.  Even better, it’s a story you can stir, strain and sip to take away the worries of the day. Without any further introduction, I give you the Ahmad Cocktail:

½ ounce Cohiba infused Jose Cuervo Especial  

1 ounce Baluarte Reposado Tequila

1 small sugar cube

2 slices orange rind

2 dashes Angostura bitters

2 dashes soda water

Instructions:

Pour the spirits into a mixing glass and add the bitters, the soda water, the sugar cube and one piece of rind.  Muddle the ingredients together and stir until the sugar cube is completely dissolved.  Add ice and stir vigorously.  Strain into a rocks glass and garnish with the second orange rind.

Impression: Like badly needing to brush your teeth on a Sunday morning while listening to the dulcet sounds of Busby Berkeley Dreams  (You had to be there)

* Too soon?

AA