Created for a customer who was on his way to a sushi dinner and wanted something Japanese to prime his palate, Toby Cecchini’s Bergamot Sour is essentially a gin sour with housemade bergamot cordial and fresh ginger syrup deployed as sweeteners, all garnished, appropriately, with a shiso leaf.
Bergamot Sour
Toby Cecchini, Long Island Bar | Brooklyn
Ingredients
Serving: 1
- 2 ounces gin, preferably Plymouth
- 1/2 ounce ginger syrup (see Editor's Note)
- 3/4 ounce bergamot cordial (see Editor's Note)
- 1 ounce lime juice
Garnish: grapefruit twist, shiso leaf
Directions
- In a shaker tin, combine all ingredients and shake.
- Strain into a rocks glass and garnish with a grapefruit twist and a shiso leaf.
Editor's Note
Ginger Syrup:
6 ounces rich simple syrup (2:1, sugar:water)
1 ounce pure ginger juice
Blend together. (Note: If you can't source ginger juice, muddle several chunks of ginger with a 1/2 ounce of simple syrup in a cocktail shaker before adding remaining ingredients.)
Bergamot Cordial:
6 bergamot fruits
1/2 cup raw cane sugar
Toby Cecchini creates his cordial by instinct, so here is an approximation for the home bartender. Peel the fruit and macerate peels in sugar overnight to make an oleo saccharum. Meanwhile, juice the peeled fruits and combine juice with the oleo saccharum and macerate for another day or two. Strain and store until ready for use.