Penicillin — tasting notes & food pairings

Penicillin

The Penicillin is a modern-classic whisky sour built from blended Scotch, fresh lemon juice and a honey-ginger syrup, shaken cold and poured over ice, then finished with a float of smoky Islay single malt and a skewer of candied ginger. It is one of the most influential cocktails of the twenty-first century, created by the Australian bartender Sam Ross at Milk & Honey in New York around 2005. The drink is warming and bracing — tart lemon and spicy ginger lifted by mellow honey, with a band of peat smoke drawn up from the float that perfumes every sip. Its name nods to the medicinal, hot-toddy feel of whisky, honey, lemon and ginger, the home remedy for a cold. It is now recognised as an official cocktail of the International Bartenders Association.

Crisp & tart22% ABV

An amber whisky sour of roughly 20 to 25 percent alcohol, served over ice and crowned with a float of peated Islay single malt. The nose leads with campfire smoke and sea-salt peat drawn up from the float, over warm fresh-ginger spice and bright lemon; the palate is tart and peppery, rounded by honey and carried by the malty, lightly sweet body of blended Scotch. The smoke sits on top deliberately, so the opening sips are the smokiest and the drink mellows as the float blends down, finishing long and warming on ginger heat and lingering peat.