The first week of the month and lo!! another cherished release from Look Left Labs. For our April shipment we have a duo that is especially New Yorky and especially Matchbook. For anyone who's followed our whiskies or vodkas, you will know our commitment to NY grains. Local grains and small farms drive the passion behind our spirits--we are lucky to be in a state that affords such access both. Enter our knack for repurposing, reusing, taking others seconds & overages, and you have two sips that truly show the ethos of our distillery.
First, Corn, a re-bottling of one our first whiskies. Made with New York Dent Corn from the Finger Lakes, mashed and distilled to express the grain. And of course, so not just any barrel will do, we are in wine country. Aged in a used syrah cask, the round fruit notes and zip add to the round sweetness of the corn spirit.
Ah, and then we have Bread. We have by now a nice tradition of working day old bread into mashes. Our series of bread whiskies are a focused serendipity that actualizes the spirit behind our creations. Over the years we've worked with many a fine baker, salvaging yesterday's bakes. Early on we were lucky enough to collaborate with the venerable Clarissa's Bakery on the South Fork. To the bread we added malt, water, yeast, and nothing more, then aged it slightly in a bourbon cask.
We are sending from out east two fine expressions of our perspective and home, a NY corn whiskey with notes of wine and a whiskey of salvaged bread from down the road.
As for the sipping, they taste exceptional on their own. However, who doesn't like a little mix with their whiskey. For April we have two cheeky takes on classics for you to enjoy.
Corn Puff
2 oz Corn
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Rich Simple Syrup
1 Egg White
Combine ingredients in a shaker tin and shake without ice. Add ice and shake some more. And then alot more. Strain through a fine strainer into a chilled sour or Coup glass. Smile.
Ginger Bread
2 oz Bread
2 barspoons Ginger Syrup*
3 dashes of Angostura Bitters
Combine over ice in an Old Fashioned glass. Stir. Maraschino cherry and candied ginger.
*In a pan combine 100 grams of chopped ginger with 100 grams of cane sugar and 200mL of water. Bring to a boil then simmer for 30 minutes, reducing the volume by half.