Pork & Stormy

Makes 1 cocktail

Our good friend Carey Bringle, the proprietor of Peg Leg Porker out of Nashville, coined the name of this cocktail, and he makes a version with his own Peg Leg Porker Tennessee Straight Bourbon. We encourage you to use your favorite bourbon and ginger beer. We’re partial to Fitz’s, which we carry at 17th Street, and Blenheim ginger ale, which we carry back whenever we visit South Carolina. We’ve added our own touch with a cane-sugar-and-bacon bourbon floater that adds a deep, sweet, smoky flavor.

• Bacon-Washed Bourbon
• 4 strips bacon
• 8 ounces bourbon (your choice)
• 1 teaspoon pure cane syrup (we use Lavington’s, Poirier’s, or Steen’s; see page 19)
•  
• Cocktail
• Ice cubes or shards (see page 252)
• 2 ounces bourbon (your choice)
• 3 ounces ginger beer
• Lime wedge, for garnish

For the bacon-washed bourbon: Fry the bacon in a cast-iron skillet until crispy. Combine 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease and the bourbon in a plastic container with a lid (eat the bacon). Shake thoroughly and freeze until the fat hardens, about 1 hour. Remove from the freezer and strain the fat from the bourbon; discard the fat. Add the cane syrup to the bourbon and mix well. Decant into a covered glass jar or bottle and store in the refrigerator.

For one cocktail: Fill a cocktail glass with ice. Add the bourbon, top with the ginger beer, and stir. Add a teaspoon of the bacon-washed bourbon to the top of the drink. Garnish with a lime wedge.