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Cocktails

The Fluffiest Ramos Ever Made

July 20, 2021

Story: Dan Q. Dao

photo: Death & Co

Cocktails

The Fluffiest Ramos Ever Made

July 20, 2021

Story: Dan Q. Dao

photo: Death & Co

For Death & Co.’s Devon Tarby, an iSi canister is the secret to light-as-air renditions of sours, flips—even eggnog

The Ramos Gin Fizz boasts two cocktail superlatives: the fluffiest drink in the canon, and the most time-consuming to shake—some say 12 minutes. Made with cream and egg white, the drink has a meringue-like quality, and if prepared correctly, a thick, fluffy cap of foam should rise above the top of the glass. As a litmus test, bartenders often insert a metal straw in the middle to see if it remains standing independently.

With this reputation, it’s no surprise that perfecting (or remixing) the Ramos Gin Fizz has become a sort of Holy Grail mission for certain obsessive bartenders. It was this call that inspired Devon Tarby, co-owner of Death & Co., to reexamine the bar’s version of the classic—this time, with the help of a handy iSi nitrous oxide (N2O) cream whipper, a kitchen gadget typically used to produce and dispense soft cheeses or whipped cream.

“As the mark of an excellent Ramos is a robust foam, we of course had to see what would happen if we put one in a device whose primary purpose is to whip cream,” says Tarby. The resulting N2O Ramos Gin Fizz is, according to the Death & Co. Instagram account, “the fluffiest cocktail we’ve ever made.”

To prepare the drink, simply place all the ingredients for a single-serving Ramos—gin, egg white, simple syrup, lime and lemon juices, orange blossom water and all—directly into an iSi canister rather than the usual shaker tin. Next, add ice cubes, making sure to not push the liquid past the fill line. Seal it, give it a few gentle shakes just to ensure the ice isn’t stuck, then charge the canister with a single N2O cartridge.

To serve, Tarby recommends pouring an ounce of “very cold, very bubbly seltzer water” into an 18-ounce glass, then inverting the canister directly over the center before dispensing. Finally, she suggests a common bartender trick of floating seltzer down the middle to boost the foam even more, so the top sits about 2 inches above the edge of the glass. Use your barspoon to create a small depression in the foam and slowly pour the seltzer down the handle of the spoon. Garnish with an orange twist expressed over the surface of the drink. “I like to serve with both a straw and long spoon on the side to enjoy the extra foamy bits,” Tarby adds.

She’s also quick to note that the Ramos Gin Fizz is far from the only drink that benefits from a whipped cream dispenser. Tarby says the nitrous oxide technique works for any recipe that calls for a protein component, such as egg whites, cream or aquafaba—think traditional sours, flips and even eggnog. (The whipper relies on this protein component to create the desired foam, so if you’re using something lighter, like coconut cream, add an emulsifier like soy lecithin or Versawhip to yield a similar texture.)

“I don’t know that it’s better than a traditionally made Ramos Gin Fizz, per se,” notes Tarby. “But it’s certainly a unique, light-as-air version.”

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