Decay. Entropy. Rot. These are the signs of fall. You can dress it up in sweaters and sprinkle it with pumpkin spice, but it’s rotten at the core. And, that’s fine with me. It’s in the name. Fall. Things fall. Leaves, sure. Rain, also tears and stars. Some things just happen to fall with grace and nobility. So much so that our cultural ideas of luxury are bound up in ideas of decline and rot.

Vintage Fog - Fall Cocktails 2018

The very word decadence signals decay and decline as much as it does indulgence and luxury. Our most luscious pleasures carry the implied weight of moral failing. Maybe there is a link. Cool weather and rotting leaves seem to encourage people to seek more luxurious pleasures.

Peated whisky and late harvest wines are two great pleasures of Autumn. This cocktail pairs Tokaji Aszu with Islay Scotch. The pair are both hallmarks of luxury and more commonly stand alone. Together they are remarkable. They both have distinct flavors heavily influenced by decomposition. Islay Scotch is noted for its intense smoke and peatiness which comes from partially decomposed moss that has been lying around a bog for a millenia or two. Tojaki gets unique flavor from noble rot.

Noble Rot. You couldn’t ask for a more compelling description of a fungus. If you’re not familiar with it, it is also known as Botrytis cinera. It’s a gray mold that attacks wine grapes. In most cases you get bunches of nasty rotten grapes. Under the right conditions, and they’re rare, you get Noble Rot. Botrytis intensifies the grape’s flavor yielding some of the world’s most desirable dessert wines. Hungarian Tokaji Aszu is a delicious, but not necessarily widely known, dessert wine made with grapes affected by Noble Rot. It is rich with dried apricot, fruit and toasty vanilla and caramel flavors. The perfect complement to fall.

This cocktail is basically a variation on the Old Fashioned. Instead of sugar it relies on the sweetness of the Tokaji. You can also subsitute Sauternes or another botrytized sweet wine if Tokaji is hard to come by. I've included a recipe for apricot bitters if you can't find a commercial source. Orange bitters will also work in a pinch.

Vintage Fog - Fall Cocktail 2018 Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 1.4 oz. Islay Single Malt Scotch
• 1/2 oz. Tokaji Aszu (you can substitute Sauterne)
• 2 dashes apricot bitters
• 1 dash aromatic bitters
• orange zest

Instructions

1. Fill a mixing glass with ice.
2. Pour in all ingredients and gently stir for 10-15 seconds
3. Strain cocktail into a chilled coupe glass or a rocks glass filled with a large ice cube
4. Twist orange zest over drink to spray with citrus oils.

Apricot Bitters - Recipe

Ingredients

• 750 ml neutral grain spirit
• 1 cup dried apricots
• 2-3 lengths dried licorice root
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 10-15 whole cardamom pods
• 10-15 whole cloves
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 15 allspice berries
• 3 star anise pods
• 2 tbsp gentian root
• 2 tbsp burdock root

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients in a 1 liter mason jar.
2. Allow mixture to infuse for approximately 3 weeks. Shake to mix occasionally.
3. Strain out solids and bottle for use.

For more fall cocktail recipes visit Cocktail Monkey. Enjoy.