Bee Keeper

Rachel Sergi, The Next Whiskey Bar | Washington, D.C.

Rachel Sergi, head bartender at The Next Whiskey Bar at The Watergate Hotel, is a regular Dewar’s drinker. “It plays really well with pineapple,” she says, a pairing that inspired this riff on a Whiskey Sour: “I wanted to do a whiskey sour with bite.” Pineapple comes into play as part of a white-pepper cordial, and the drink gets a dramatic flourish thanks to the lemon-honey espuma floating on top.

Ingredients

Serving: 1

  • 1 1/2 ounces Scotch, preferably Dewar's White Label
  • 1 1/2 ounces Scotch, preferably Dewar's White Label
  • 3/4 ounce white pepper-pineapple cordial (see Editor's Note)
  • 3/4 ounce white pepper-pineapple cordial (see Editor's Note)
  • 1/2 ounce blanc vermouth, preferably Dolin
  • 1/2 ounce blanc vermouth, preferably Dolin
  • 1 dash Bittermens Burlesque bitters
  • 1 dash Bittermens Burlesque bitters
  • lemon-honey espuma, to top (see Editor's Note)
  • lemon-honey espuma, to top (see Editor's Note)

Garnish: lemon zest

Directions
  1. Combine all ingredients except for the espuma in a rocks glass over ice.
  2. Top with espuma and grate lemon zest.
Editor's Note

White Pepper-Pineapple Cordial:
1/4 cup white peppercorn, coarsely crushed
48 ounces pineapple juice
4 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon citric acid

Toast the white peppercorns in a dry, hot pan until there's a slight change in color and a distinct smell of white peppercorn. Add the pineapple juice and sugar and stir. Bring to a boil then to a simmer. Add citric acid, stir and reduce by one third. Let cool before straining out the peppercorns and bottling. Refrigerate immediately.

Lemon-Honey Espuma:
5 ounces egg whites
3 ounces lemon juice
3 ounces honey syrup (2:1, honey:hot water), chilled

Combine all ingredients together and agitate slightly. Add to an iSi whipped cream canister. Double-charge and chill.