The Mojito has rudely interrupted many a bar’s circulation. One order of the basic minty drink tends to result in one other, till each patron within the place is looking for a summery highball that makes bartenders groan.
Peter Altenburg discovered a greater approach: For his riff on the Mojito known as &thesea, he skips the pile of mint on the backside of the glass altogether and as an alternative leans on “mint-washed” rum and mint-infused Spanish vermut.
Fowl, Altenburg’s Copenhagen bar, pre-batches all of its cocktails, which will increase consistency, decreases service time and lessens the clatter of bottles on the backbar, a vital win for a jazz bar that usually hosts DJs spinning vinyl. “We now have lowered most noise from the bar,” Altenburg says, with the intention to “concentrate on acoustics and nice music experiences.”
Within the case of the &thesea, the cocktail additionally seems extra streamlined than a basic Mojito, whereas nonetheless packing a minty freshness that may generally even elude the rum basic made the normal approach. Altenburg doesn’t muddle any mint within the glass, and the presentation options no accoutrements past an ice pillar and a small mint sprig. The key to all this readability lies in two varieties of infusions.
“The important mint leaf oils are fairly delicate and simply flip into ‘moist canine’ notes,” warns Altenburg, and the important thing to avoiding that’s rapidly introducing alcohol to the herbs after extracting their oils. The primary infusion begins with an oleo saccharum made with superfine sugar, mint stems and mint leaves muddled collectively and refrigerated in a single day. It continues with a “rum wash,” the place unaged rum combines with the combination and rests within the freezer for one more 24 hours. Preserving every part frigid secures a robust base of minty rum whereas stopping “a heavy, pungent and undesired mint taste,” in keeping with Altenburg, who makes use of the approach for drinks “that carry fragile important oils.” That features a springtime play on a French 75 that includes a pine-shoot oleo saccharum washed with a neighborhood impartial spirit, and an Americano that showcases basil oleo saccharum washed with vermouth. Altenburg says the vermouth’s decrease alcohol content material gives a gentler medium for extracting oils, pulling much more delicate flavors from the herb than a high-proof wash.
The second mint infusion for the &thesea additionally makes use of vermouth to extract these lighter, subtler flavors. In a blender, Altenburg briefly blitzes Spanish vermut blanco with contemporary mint leaves and lets the combination sit for an hour within the fridge. Each mint washes get strained by means of a espresso filter, leading to clear spirits with a slight inexperienced tinge. Collectively, the 2 infusions seize a variety of the herb’s nuances, from leaf to stem.
&thesea
A Mojito that skips the muddling in favor of mint-infused rum and vermouth.
Blended into the &thesea, together with malic acid for tartness and a housemade elderflower syrup, the mint-packed components supply “a gentle and nearly silky liquid with tons of mint aromas and a plentiful but elegant rum kick,” in keeping with Altenburg.
Past the Mojito and its family members just like the Previous Cuban, the mint rum might work nicely in a Mint Julep, a Southside (or a Baltimore Southside) or because the float in a Swampwater. In the meantime, the mint vermouth may really feel at dwelling within the Lifetime Ban, a play on a reverse Martini that provides sherry and mint to the formulation, although Altenburg recommends letting it shine in a dead-simple serve: “The mint vermouth is completely sensible with glowing water or tonic.”
