A classic Ward Eight set through the lens of an anything-but-classic izakaya, this drink gets some umami from a tamari-laced lime cordial and acidity from a rice wine vinegar-infused grenadine. Bartender Darren Swisher says that bourbon will lead to a drink that’s “sweeter, rounded and fuller bodied,” while the rye will offer something “drier and more linear.”
Hojoko’s Ward Eight
Darren Swisher, Hojoko| Boston
Ingredients
Serving: 1
- 1 1/2 ounces bourbon, preferably Larceny or Weller 107
- OR 1 1/2 ounces rye whiskey, preferably Rittenhouse
- 1/2 ounce lemon juice
- 1/2 ounce Hojoko grenadine (see Editor's Note)
- 1/4 ounce orange juice
- 1/4 ounce Hojoko lime cordial (see Editor's Note)
- 2 dashes orange bitters
Directions
- Combine ingredients in cocktail shaker with ice.
- Shake and strain into chilled cocktail glass.
Editor's Note
Grenadine:
500g white sugar
17 3/4 ounces pomegranate juice
5 1/3 ounces pomegranate molasses
12 drops of orange blossom water
Dissolve sugar in juice. Add molasses, and fine strain. Add blossom water, and bottle.
Lime Cordial:
500g of spent lime shells (what is left over after making lime juice)
500g sugar
14 ounces lime juice
3 1/2 ounces sudachi juice
1/2 ounce seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp tamari
5 ounces 80-proof neutral spirit
Allow the sugar to sit on the lime shells for 12 hours. Add lime juice, sudachi juice, seasoned rice wine vinegar, tamari and neutral spirit. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Fine strain, and bottle.