Piña Colada
Milk-Washed Scotch, Lime, Pineapple, Coconut Liqueur, Tiki Bitters
Bartender Chris Amirault of Otium | Los Angeles
Yield: 1 cocktail
When was the last time you enjoyed a Piña Colada inspired by Scotch, afternoon tea, and Dave Arnold? Probably never, unless you’ve had the pleasure of sitting across the bar from Chris Amirault at Otium in downtown Los Angeles. One night, while drinking a “copious amount of Scotch” at 7 Grand, Amirault attempted to right the night with chasers of hot green tea. The combination cemented in his flavor Rolodex, and he began to experiment with tea-infused Scotch. While researching teas for the infusion, he stumbled across the British proclivity for serving tea with milk. A lightbulb went off, and he landed on a milk-washing technique from Dave Arnold that would work to subdue the tea’s tannins. How did that translate to a tropical Piña Colada? Amirault learned how to make one of L.A.’s best rum-pineapple-coconut concoctions while working at The Eveleigh. Translated for Otium’s culinary-driven cocktails, his Piña Colada gets added layers of smoke, depth, and surprise.
Adapted by StarChefs | June 2017
INGREDIENTS
Milk-Washed Scotch:
Yield: Five 750-milliliter bottles
55 grams sencha green tea
Five 750-milliliter bottles Dewar's 12-year Scotch
1¼ liters whole milk
3 ounces lemon juice
To Assemble and Serve:
Yield: 1 cocktail
¾ ounce lime juice
½ ounce pineapple juice
½ ounce simple syrup
¼ ounce Clément Mahina coconut liqueur
3 dashes Bittermens Elemakule Tiki bitters
Sencha tea powder
Laphroaig 10-year Scotch
METHOD
For the Milk-Washed Scotch:
In a large nonreactive container, combine tea and Scotch; steep 30 minutes. Strain into separate container with milk; stir gently. Add lemon juice. Stir until milk begins to curdle. Scale 680 grams of curdled mixture and pour into centrifuge containers. Spin at 3,900rpm for 15 minutes; strain, discarding solids. Refrigerate infusion up to 2 weeks.
To Assemble and Serve:
To a shaker with ice, add 1¾ ounces Milk-washed Scotch, lime, pineapple, simple syrup, coconut liqueur, and bitters; shake. Double strain into a coupe. Garnish with sencha green tea powder and a Laphroaig mist.
