At Brooklyn’s Long Island Bar, Toby Cecchini has kept his dead-simple Scotch & Soda, which was inspired following a trip to Japan, on the menu for the past year. “I wanted something that… had a slight twist to it, and a subtle nod to Japan as the inspiration,” he says of the drink, which is garnished twice, with an aromatic twist of grapefruit peel and a shiso leaf. As a base, Cecchini experimented with a number of lighter-style whiskies from both Japan and Speyside, but settled on the fruity and “featherlight” Compass Box’s Great King Street Artist’s Blend, which he describes as “perfection” in the two-ingredient formula.
Scotch & Soda
Toby Cecchini, The Long Island Bar | Brooklyn, NY

Ingredients
Serving: 1
- 2 ounces whiskey, preferably Compass Box Great King Street
- 8 ounces soda water, to top
Garnish: shiso leaf, grapefruit twist
Directions
- Fill a highball glass halfway with ice to ensure enough space for the water.
- Add the whiskey.
- Top with soda water.
- Garnish with one shiso leaf and a twist of fresh grapefruit peel.