As the spirits columnist for Chili Pepper magazine, writer Kara Newman knows a thing or two about tingly tipples. I first heard her chat about the art of savory cocktails this past summer at the ridiculously fun Tales of the Cocktail conference in New Orleans, LA, and I couldn’t wait to sit down and talk more about adding spice to ice—which is exactly the name of her great, new book: Spice & Ice: 70 Tongue-Tingling Cocktails. The thing I love about Kara’s cocktail recipes is they’re not only flavorful, but so fun to make. And in all likelihood, you have a lot of the ingredients on hand already (or, at least, won’t have to go to the ends of the earth to find them). Here’s what she had to say this week about kickin’ up your cocktails:
AZ: Do particular spirits do better with hot spice v. savory spice? Are there any that are particularly tough?
KN: Vodka and tequila definitely work best in terms of hot spices. If i had to pick one, I’d probably say tequila is the one that marries most easily with hot peppers. Although vodka is great with just about anything, even wasabi, whereas I think tequila might be a tougher match for that. As for the brown spirits, they also work really well with both the savory and hot spices.
AZ: When it comes to tequila, does barrel age make a big difference when you’re kicking things up?
KN: I don’t know if it makes a big difference, but I think some of the really aged ones are just so lovely on their own I’d hesitate to try to infuse them with anything. Silver [typically unaged] and reposado [aged in barrels for less than a year] tequilas are great for infusing.
AZ: When making a cocktail that uses hot spice, are there key balancing flavors that need to be present for the drink to work?
KN: Every drink has its own balance point; it’s important to recognize that heat alone doesn’t make a great drink. You want to balance both the flavor and heat levels, and I think the easiest way to do that is, as you’re making an infusion or a drink, you want to keep tasting it as you go along to make sure it’s at the right point for your taste. Also, if you’re making an infusion and it’s perfectly where you want it and you’re working with cut peppers or horseradish, you want to make sure you take it out of the infusion right away so you hit that sweet spot and it doesn’t continue to over-infuse and get completely fiery and out of control.
AZ: Is there any way to correct or counteract a drink that’s too spicy? Like, recently I had a great Bloody Mary at Buttermilk Channel in Brooklyn with a hunk of cheese as a garnish, which was a great counterpoint to the spiciness. What else can you do? Or is it too late at that point?
KN: Well, it depends on the drink. It might be too late and you may well just want to toss it, but in terms of bringing the heat level back down, you can always add more sugar because that tends to smooth out some of the rough edges from hotter elements. If you do add more simple syrup, sugar, juice, or liqueur, then you’ll probably want to add more alcohol to make the drink balanced again. Of course, you’re likely making two drinks at that point instead of just one! It can be tough to wind up with a balanced drink this way, though, and you might end up with something overly sweet. But you hit on something there with that Bloody Mary with that hunk of cheese on it—dairy is fantastic for cutting heat as well. Just like if you go to a Mexican restaurant and they give you a bit of sour cream to cool the heat from your nachos, you can also have a spicy drink with a hunk of cheese as a garnish or served on the side. I usually do a plate of bread and cheese when I’m testing out spicy cocktails. The starch and dairy help cut the heat.
AZ: Fresh juices and garnishes are always the ultimate cocktail ingredient, but many of us tend to have a lot of dried herbs and spices around, too. What are some common ones that many people have that can be used in a cocktail?
KN: I think just about anything in your spice rack is fair game. For people who don’t like the super hot stuff, there’s a wonderful range of gentler alternatives in your spice rack. You’ve got vanilla and cinnamon and clove and ginger, and they all add a bit of zing and complexity without the heat. I’m an especially big fan of ginger in anything and everything. Or cinnamon and clove in infused syrups.
AZ: Care to contribute an autumnal-appropriate cocktail for our readers?
KN: Sure! The Cinder is a cocktail I just love that was given to me by Phil Ward, who was over at Death & Company when we were crafting recipes for the book, and is now at the bar Mayahuel. It’s 2 kinds of tequila, the silver and the reposado, and a bit of mescal thrown in for good measure. There’s a smoked salt on the rim and the silver tequila is infused with jala, and it has this wonderfuil smoky heat to it.
The Cinder
- 1 oz. simple syrup, plus 1 Tbs for the rim Smoked salt mix for rim (1/2 cup smoked salt mixed with 1/4 cup kosher salt)
- *1 oz. jalapeno-infused 100% Blue Agave silver tequila
- 1 oz. 100% BLUE AGAVE resposado tequila
- 1 1/4 oz Los Amantes Joven Mezcal
Moisten the rim of a glass with 1 Tbs of simple syrup. Roll the edge of the
glass in the salt mix to coat. Allow to dry. In a cocktail shaker filled
with ice, shake together the rest of the ingredients and strain into the
rimmed glass. Enjoy!
*Infused tequila:
- 1 cup silver tequila
- 1 to 2 hot peppers, washed and cut lengthwise
Combine tequila and peppers in a small glass container with a lid. Steep for
as little as 2 hours, or up to 2 days, until desired heat is achieved
(remember Kara¹s advice: keep tasting to check it!). Strain with a fine-mesh
sieve.
