這款雞尾酒是為Nikka Perfect Serve雞尾酒大賽創作的，所以，我自然希望能夠體現Nikka from the Barrel威士忌的復雜和精細風味。這款調和型日本威士忌的裝瓶強度達到51.4度，擁有調制雞尾酒足夠的強度和結構。對于這杯酒，我希望能夠調出甜、酸和草本的風味，并且因為身在比利時，我也希望將本地原料運用其中。比利時有非常深厚的啤酒釀造傳統，所以我決定采用一款啤酒。羅登巴赫特級啤酒是一款采用橡木陳年的深色愛爾啤酒，將它作為原料會十分有趣，因為它能夠帶來深沉、水果和微酸的風味，以及少許烘烤橡木的味道（可能在比利時以外不太容易找到這款啤酒，所以用其它帶有果味的深色愛爾啤酒替代也可以）。卡帕諾安提卡配方是一款濃重、草本味的甜味美思，由皮埃蒙特麝香葡萄以及意大利紅酒和白葡萄酒釀成，帶有水果的香氣，純凈而強勁。有時候它在混飲中會顯得過于強勢，但我認為強勁的Nikka威士忌可以恰當地對其進行平衡。調酒時我采用了斯維澤攪拌手法——斯維澤指的是一端分叉的細長木攪棒，同時也是一種酒的名稱——因為我認為它需要一點炫技成分，同時也需要日式調酒的細心和儀式感（盡管斯維澤可能起源于十九世紀加勒比海的種植園）。此外我還想通過這杯酒顯示，威士忌雞尾酒不一定都是濃烈而男性化的，只適合在聚會場合中痛飲——就像《廣告狂人》里那樣。它也可以是清淡、清新和女性化的（哪怕使用了高度數的威士忌）。當然，由于我使用了碎冰，稀釋度是個問題。所以這杯酒需要適當提高甜味，以便令風味持續到最后。而橙子帶來了明快的甜味，檸檬汁則帶來刺激和偏酸一點的結構。

This drink was made for Nikka Perfect Serve cocktail competition so, of course, the idea was to tease out the complexities and nuances of the whisky. Bottled at 51.4 per cent abv, this Japanese blend has the strength and the structure for mixing with cocktails. For this drink, I wanted to develop a sweet, sour and herbal profile and, being in Belgium, I wanted to use a local ingredient. Of course, Belgium has very strong brewing traditions so I decided to use a beer. Rodenback Grand Cru, an oak-aged dark ale, made for an interesting ingredient because of its potential to add dark, fruity and slightly sour notes as well its light streak of toasted oak (although it might be difficult to find outside of Belgium, a stand-in shouldn’t be too hard to find: other dark, red ales with fruity profiles should do the same job). Carpano Antica Formula is a rich, herbal, sweet vermouth made from Piedmont muscatel and Italian red and white wines which has a good fruity purity and quite a powerful expression of flavours. Sometimes, it can be too overwhelming in a mixed drink but I think in this case it’s tempered with the strength of the Nikka whisky. I use the swizzle technique to make this drink – so-called after the long-stemmed, pronged wooden stick used to mix, or “swizzle”, the drink – because, for me, it requires a bit of showmanship as well as the carful, ritualistic kind of skill that I associate with Japanese bartending (even though the practice originated in the plantations of the Caribbean, probably in the 19th century). Plus, I wanted to show that whisky drinks don’t necessarily have to be hulky, butch, spirituous libations for heavy, Mad Men-esque session drinking. They can also be light, refreshing and feminine, too (even high strength whisky). Of course, as I’m using crushed ice, dilution is an issue. So the drink needs a slightly sweeter profile that lasts to the last sip. So orange brings a bright, sweet freshness while a small amount of lemon juice adds tang and a bit more acidic structure.

Swizzle from the Barrel

• 45ml Nikka from the Barrel威士忌（或原桶強度威士忌）
• 15ml 卡帕諾安提卡配方味美思
• 10ml 羅登巴赫特級啤酒糖漿（或其它果味、厚重的深色愛爾啤酒）*
• 20ml 橙汁
• 10ml 檸檬汁
• 1吧勺 阿拉伯樹膠糖醬

將所有原料倒入大型干邑品酒杯，裝滿碎冰后用斯維澤攪棒攪勻

* 在平底鍋中放入一杯白糖和一杯啤酒，用小火使糖融化。

** 將斯維澤攪棒分叉的一端插入杯子底部，另一端則用雙手夾住，用掌心迅速轉動攪棒并同時輕輕上下拉動。

• 45ml Nikka from the Barrel (or other cask-strength whisky)
• 15ml Carpano Antica Formula
• 10ml Rodenbach Grand Cru beer syrup (or any other dark ale with rich, fruit profile)*
• 20ml Orange juice
• 10ml Lemon juice
• 1bsp Arabic gum syrup

* Combine one cup of white sugar with one cup of beer in a saucepan; dissolve the sugar over a low heat.

**Place the pronged end of the swizzle stick into the drink; place the end of the stick between both hands and rotate the shaft of the stick between each palm rigorously while gently moving the stick up and down.