Golden Oak

Corn Cob-Infused Bourbon, Banana-Infused Oloroso, Shiitake-Honey Syrup, Aquavit, Benedictine, and Angostura Bitters

Bartender Nathan O'Neill of The NoMad | New York

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Adapted by StarChefs | october 2019

INGREDIENTS:

Banana-infused Oloroso:
(Yield: 750 milliliters)
750 milliliters oloroso Sherry
12 ounces banana purée
3 mililigrams Pectinex

Corn Cob-infused Bourbon:
(Yield: 1 liter)
6 corn cobs
1 liter Wild Turkey 101 bourbon

Shiitake-Honey Syrup:
(Yield: 2 quarts)
50 grams dried shiitake mushrooms
1 quart honey

To Assemble and Serve:
(Yield: 1 cocktail)
½ ounce Linie aquavit
¼ ounce Benedictine
4 dashes coffee-infused Angostura bitters
2 dashes mole bitters

METHOD:

For the Banana-infused Oloroso:
To a Vitamix blender, add all ingredients: purée. Pour into a centrifugal mixer and spin on continuous. Strain through a chinois.

For the Corn Cob-infused Bourbon:
Heat combination oven to 425ºF with fan on high speed. On a parchment-lined sheet tray, roast cobs until charred. Remove and reserve cobs. Adjust oven to 140ºF and 100 percent humidity on steam. In a vacuum bag, combine cobs and bourbon; seal. Steam 45 minutes. Strain through a chinois, squeezing corn cobs to extract absorbed bourbon. Strain again through a cheesecloth- or coffee filter-lined chinois. Re-bottle and label.

For the Shiitake-Honey Syrup:
To a Vitamix blender, add shiitake and 1 quart hot water. Blend on high speed 1 minute. Transfer to a Cambro. Steep 30 minutes. Strain through a Superbag or cheesecloth-lined chinois into nonreactive container. Whisk in honey.

To Assemble and Serve:
In a mixing glass with ice, combine 1 ounce Banana-infused Oloroso, ¾ ounce Corn Husk-infused Bourbon, ½ ounce Shiitake-Honey Syrup, aquavit, Benedictine, and bitters; stir. Strain into an old fashioned glass with a 2-inch ice cube.

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