I encourage you to experiment with combining spirits and foraged flavors. Take chances, follow your gut. The more you do it, the better you’ll do it. Think about the flavor of the base spirit first, then ask yourself if you want something that contrasts with that flavor or something that echoes its flavor profile. For example, gins often have a floral flavor profile. They combine well with equally floral flavors, such as lavender (see Santa Fe Sundowner) and also with acidic, tangy flavors, like sumac berries (see Sumac Spritzer). Sweet spirits like bourbons play well with bitter ingredients, and the sharp, spicy flavor of a quality rye works with just about anything.
Here are a few philosophical guidelines to get you started.
According to US law, bourbon whiskey must be made from at least 51 percent corn and can only be produced in the United States. It must be aged in new, charred oak barrels. Those are the rules.
Within the category you’ll find plenty of variation, and that’s due to the remaining 49 percent of the grain. Traditional bourbons, like Jim Beam, Knob Creek, and Wild Turkey, usually use about 70 percent corn and approximately equal amounts of rye and barley. Sweeter bourbons like Maker’s Mark and Pappy Van Winkle include corn, barley, and wheat (rather than rye).
Bourbon tends to be sweet and silky in mouthfeel. Each category of bourbon has something to recommend it and blends well with different wild edible plants. Take the sweetness and spice level of each bourbon into consideration when you’re creating foraged cocktails.
Brandy is a spirit distilled from wine or any fermented fruit juice. It includes cognac, Armagnac, grappa, calvados, eau-de-vie, and pisco. The distillation process not only increases the ABV of the wine or fermented juice (most brandies range from 35 to 60 percent ABV) but also introduces new flavors via the application of heat. Brandy is usually consumed at room temperature as a digestif. It’s also used to fortify wines and is a popular cocktail ingredient.
Different gradations of brandy refer to the length of time it has been aged in casks. These time periods are strictly regulated by the French government for cognacs and Armagnacs and may be used more generally for other types of brandy.
V.S. stands for Very Special and marks a brandy that has been cask aged for at least 2 years.
V.S.O.P. means Very Superior Old Pale and describes a brandy stored for at least 4 years in a cask.
XO and Napoléon denote brandies aged for at least 6 years.
Gin is a distilled spirit primarily associated with the flavor of juniper berries. There are several important classifications of gin:
London dry gin is the most common type of gin and its juniper berry flavor is quite pronounced. Beefeater, Tanqueray, and Bombay Sapphire are well-known London dry gins. London dry gins also often include citrus notes.
Plymouth gin is similar to London dry but slightly sweeter. According to British law, it can only be made in Plymouth, England. The only brand currently in production is produced by the Black Friars Distillery.
Floral gin is not a strict technical definition but refers to gins with less emphasis on juniper flavor and more emphasis on prominent alternative botanical flavors.
Navy-strength gin is bottled at 57 percent ABV, whereas most gin is bottled at 40 percent ABV. The story goes that gins with lower ABVs might, if spilled on gunpowder, prevent that gunpowder from igniting. On a naval vessel that could be a problem, so British naval vessels were supplied with navy-strength gin.
Rum is primarily distilled from fermented molasses or fermented sugarcane juice. Most rum comes from the Caribbean islands and Latin America, where sugarcane is a major crop. The French-speaking Caribbean islands generally use fresh sugarcane juice rather than molasses; rum produced this way is known as agricultural rum (rhum agricole). There is no single set of rules for classifying rum; different countries use different categories and vocabularies to describe their spirits. Here are a few general distinctions.
White rum has a sweet taste and is often used in cocktails where its lack of pronounced flavor makes it useful for blending. White rums may be aged (although most aren’t), but they are usually filtered before being bottled to remove any color obtained through the aging process.
Gold rum is aged and golden in color. The color comes from the cask in which the rum was aged, usually charred bourbon barrels. Gold rums often have more flavor than white rums.
Dark rum is aged longer in heavily charred barrels from which it extracts stronger flavors than either white or gold rum. Dark rums are typical of Jamaica, Haiti, and Martinique and have overtones of spices and caramel.
US law says that American rye whiskey must be made from at least 51 percent rye and aged in new, charred oak barrels. The other ingredients are usually corn and barley. There is no aging requirement for rye, but when the spirit is aged for more than 2 years, it may be labeled straight rye. Rye is crisper, spicier, and leaner than bourbon. I love rye. It’s the gin of brown liquors, and by that I mean it’s versatile and flexible and goes well with just about everything.
Canadian whisky is often called rye because it was historically distilled from rye. However, it is not bound by the same rules as American rye and while it often (but not always) contains rye grain, it may do so in varying amounts, depending on the brand. The government rules concerning Canadian whisky allow for a variety of grain combinations and proportions. Canadian Club Chairman’s Select is made from 100 percent rye, but many Canadian whiskies contain more corn than rye.
Scotch whisky is made primarily from malted barley but may also include corn and rye. Law in the United Kingdom stipulates that single-malt Scotch must be made from 100 percent malted barley, produced by two distillation runs, and aged in oak casks for at least 3 years. Blended Scotch is the result of blending two or more single malts.
Whisky and whiskey are both spirits distilled from immature, hopless beer. Why the different spellings, you ask? I can’t say why, but I can tell you that in Scotland and Canada people spell whiskey with a –y. Elsewhere, it’s spelled with an –ey. Both are acceptable as far as the dictionary goes (they’re listed as alternative spellings for each other). I try to respect the country of origin and spell the spirit the way its maker intended.
According to Mexican law, only tequila produced in the states of Guanajuato, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Tamaulipas can legally be called tequila. Tequila can only be made from blue agave plants; no other species of agave may be used. One hundred percent agave tequila is made entirely from the sugars of blue agave. Mixto tequila must be at least 51 percent blue agave sugars, with additional sugars allowed from other sources (usually cane sugars) but not from other agaves. Mixto tequila may also contain coloring and flavorings from other sources and can be bottled (not made) outside of Tequila territory.
Blanco tequila is unaged and is usually less expensive than aged tequilas. Many mixologists consider this the purest form of tequila. It’s a clear liquid with sharp flavors.
Reposado tequila is aged in oak barrels for 2 to 12 months. The type of barrel varies and will influence the final flavor of the tequila, but in general this short aging period adds smoothness.
Gold tequila is usually a mixto and the gold coloring comes from caramel and oak extract additives. It’s usually a less-expensive tequila. Less common are 100 percent agave gold tequilas made from blending blanco and reposado tequilas.
Añejo tequila is aged in oak for 1 to 3 years and batches must be no larger than 600 liters. These tequilas are usually smooth and richly flavored.
Mezcal is made from agave, like tequila, but the underground cooking process, fueled by wood charcoal, gives some mezcals a strong smoky flavor. Mexican law allows for mezcal to be made from many different agaves (not just the blue agave); it generally comes from the Mexican states of Durango, Guerrero, Oaxaca, San Luis Potosí, and Zacatecas.
Vermouth is wine flavored with herbs and spices and fortified with additional distilled spirits, brandy being the most common. It is sometimes called aromatized wine because the herbs and spices give it fragrance as well as flavor. The name comes from the German word for wormwood (Wermut), which is a primary flavoring in many vermouths. Wormwood is the common name for several artemisia species, including Artemisia vulgaris, more commonly known as mugwort, which is itself a useful foraged cocktail ingredient.
Most people think of vermouth as a classic martini ingredient, but it’s useful in lots of different cocktails and is also quite tasty on its own. Some of the best-known producers of vermouth include Carpano, Noilly Prat, Martini & Rossi, and Cinzano. There are two main categories of vermouth.
Dry vermouth is pale and the primary flavor is bitter and botanical. You may see it labeled French vermouth. It’s most commonly used in martinis.
Sweet vermouth is usually (but not always) red. This style of vermouth is sometimes called Italian vermouth and is strongly associated with the Manhattan cocktail. Sweet white vermouth falls between sweet red vermouth and dry vermouth on the sweetness continuum.
Vodka is a neutral grain spirit that is valued for having no flavor of its own. It’s usually made from grains but may also be distilled from potatoes, beets, or grapes.
Vodka is distilled multiple times, which is essential to producing its neutral flavor. The purity of water used in the process is also important to producing an almost flavorless spirit. Vodka is filtered through charcoal after the final distillation and requires no aging.
If something has no flavor, why use it? The lack of flavor allows the personality of the other ingredients to shine through, and when you’re working with precious foraged ingredients, this is a useful characteristic.
Different vodkas may have different mouthfeels, ranging from silky to watery. You may also notice a difference in the amount of heat you feel when you taste a vodka on its own. Generally speaking, a greater number of distillations produces a smoother vodka.
You can buy flavored vodkas, but if you’re interested in foraged flavors, you’ll probably want to make your own vodka infusions. It’s easy to infuse vodkas with flavorful wild plants. Spruce tip vodka, as an example, has a bright citrus flavor that’s tasty and versatile.
Like still wines, sparkling wines come in all colors and levels of sweetness. Their fizziness is the result of either secondary fermentation, in which the wine is fermented a second time with additional yeast and sugar, or the direct injection of carbon dioxide into the wine.
Champagne is the most famous sparkling wine. According to French law, champagne can only be produced in the Champagne region of France. Most countries abide by this rule, but not all. If you want to be sure you’re getting true champagne, check the certificate of origin on the bottle. Carbonation of champagne is regulated and may only be achieved by the traditional method of a secondary fermentation in the bottle. Champagnes may be white or rosé and sweet or dry.
Sparkling wines are produced in many countries, and each has its own name: in Germany you’ll buy Sekt, Spanish sparkling wine is cava, and in Italy you’ll find prosecco and Asti. As you become familiar with different vintages and brand names, you’ll discover which flavors suit your cocktail needs. Just because a sparkling wine isn’t technically a champagne doesn’t mean it’s not cocktail-worthy.
Port is a fortified wine made in the Douro River Valley of Portugal. It is most often served as a dessert wine but also makes an interesting cocktail ingredient. Ruby port may be aged either in casks or in neutral containers for up to 3 years. Its flavor is fruity, and it is the least-expensive type of port due to its short aging time. Tawny port is the sweetest style of port and has strong caramel and nut flavors, which it gets from being barrel aged longer than ruby port.
Sherry is a fortified wine produced in Andalusia, Spain. There are many different types, running the gamut from light and dry (fino and manzanilla) to heavier, darker varieties (oloroso and amontillado). Sherry is often enjoyed plain, as either an aperitif or a digestif, but it can also be used as a cocktail ingredient. Fino sherries will brighten a cocktail and add light acidity, while oloroso brings an almost raisiny sweetness to the glass.