My Toddy's So Buddha-Licious
Note: While you read this post, please bask in the glow of this early 2000s pop smash, Bootylicious by Destiny's Child.
I know, I just did a Buddha's Hand Cocktail, but then I realized I had an opportunity to make a drink with the best name in the history of my blog.
In last week's post, I tried to capitalize on a complex harmony between dill, citrus, salmon, and aquavit. For this hot toddy, I wanted to get back to the essence of the Buddha's Hand. At its heart, a hot toddy is pretty close to a classic punch, but with the "weak" element heated. Your classic punch is 1 part sour, 2 parts sweet, 3 parts strong, 4 parts weak. This is usually rendered as lime juice, simple syrup, rum, and water, but if you make that drink, it doesn't feel quite right:
1-2-3-4 punch?
.5 oz lime
1 oz simple syrup
1.5 oz rum
2 oz water
After shaking with ice, you can expect your 3 oz cocktail to gain about 2 oz of water. Personally though, I prefer .75 oz of lime, and .5 oz of sugar, for a 1.5-1-3-4 sort of ratio. Well, times and tastes changes. Anyway, all of this is a long lead up to say that a classic punch is usually made with an oleo saccharum, and in this instance, the classic punch ratio ended up being perfect. Perhaps oleo saccharum isn't as sweet as 1:1 simple syrup?
Please note that the rosemary above was completely decorative, sandwiched in between two separable glass pieces in the unique serving vessel that we found for this drink. A stemless cocktail glass sits snugly inside a glass bowl, insulated by a layer of air. Not only is this perfect for keeping your drink warm, but it has a bulbous shape that reminded me of a laughing Buddha. Of course, one of these Buddha Tiki Mugs would be even better.
My Toddy's So Buddha-Licious
1.5 oz rye (Dickel)
1 oz Dilled Buddha's Hand Oleo Saccharum
.5 oz lemon juice
Top with 2 oz boiling water and float a single star anise inside.
As you will recall, the Buddha's hand oleo from last week had some dill in it, but by the time I made this drink a couple days later, the dill flavor had mellowed substantially. I chose rye to further blur the flavor of dill in the drink, a job it did admirably owing to its pickley notes. Lemon flavor is similar enough to Buddha's hand that it can play a supporting role, while leaving the oily fragrance of its lead to be the star.
This drink captured the flavor of Buddha's hand with a lot of purity. In a way, it tasted like an idealized Buddha's hand might, if only the fruit had flesh to go with its unctuous skin.
I got away from winter spices this week, which allowed us to focus on the core composition of this style.
Hot Toddy Lesson Four: A toddy is a classic punch.