Matcha Old Fashioned

A few years ago when I visited home, one of my sisters took me out to Bar Leather Apron which has a fantastic Japanese style bar program. For a very long time, Hawaii’s culture is far more plugged in with what’s going on in Asia. I remember back when I was in high school in the early aughts, there was a match craze that swept Hawaii. While matcha is becoming more common on the mainland, the level of excitement around it is still nowhere near as it was about 15 years ago in Hawaii. 

Bar Leather Apron makes a matcha old fashioned that’s really good and when I first had it there, I asked how they made it. It seemed like the only trick was dissolving the matcha. Their bartenders use an electric milk frother (wand) that did the trick well. At home, since I’m not making them for a lot of people, I can make do with a less efficient way without investing on a single use tool like that. So I use a whisk and just try to muscle through whisking it.

Old fashioneds are relatively simple drinks and are still popular. I’ve chatted with friends about how to tell if a bartender is really good and most of them seem to judge it on how well they can make their drink of choice. However, when I’ve chatted with bartenders about this same question, they give me a very different answer. Generally, a classic daiquiri is the general test of a bartender’s skill because it should balance the flavor of the rum, sweetness, and sourness where all three should be in a harmonious balance. Plus it’s a test for the bartender’s skills for dilution. So how is this related to an old fashioned?

While shaking is an important skill for bartenders, I’ve heard from a few that to test a bartender’s skill for making stirred/boozy cocktails, it’s not the old fashioned that’s a good test, but the negroni. Campari is pretty bitter and it’s easy to add too much and throw off the balance of the drink. So like the daiquiri, the negroni’s three ingredients must be balanced in a very different way of the taste and aroma of gin, sweetness from the vermouth, and bitterness from Campari. The old fashioned is considered too simple of a drink with only whiskey, sugar/simple syrup, and bitters and the old fashioned should taste more like whatever whiskey you are using. And since it’s more focused on the whiskey, making a next level old fashioned might mean more of a personal preference and familiarity with specific whiskeys. 

So, of course I’ve made my own version and one of my favorite whiskeys for an old fashioned is a bourbon. Four Roses Single Barrel. With a slightly higher ABV (50%) than the average bourbon, the extra ABV gives it a nice boozy bite to it without being harsh. I remember the first ones that I made, I kept trying to add angostura bitters and it always kept coming out too bitter and realized that matcha is already quite bitter, so instead of using that, opted to replace it with only orange bitters which more closely matches the taste of the one I had at Bar Leather Apron. 

RECIPE:
1.5 oz Four Roses Single Barrel
Dememara sugar cube
0.4 g matcha (about 1/4 tsp)
10 drops of orange bitters 
Orange zest

Note: For those without a scale that can measure as precise as 0.1 grams, 1/4 tsp will get you pretty close to 0.4 grams of matcha. When I tried measuring this a few times, the scoops I got were 0.4-0.5 grams depending on how tight the scoop was packed. Depending on the matcha you have, you may need to adjust the amount as well so keep this in mind. This happens to work well with the matcha that I had on hand when I wrote out this recipe.

In a mixing glass, add the bourbon and the sugar cube, and a splash of water. With a muddler, crush the sugar cube to dissolve. Add matcha and with a whisk, vigorously mix until matcha is well dissolved along with any remaining sugar. 

Add the orange bitters and ice cubes. Stir until it tastes good. I stir mine close to 30 seconds because the ice cubes I have are slightly bigger and takes longer to melt. 

In a lowball tumbler, place a large piece of clear ice or fill with ice cubes. Strain cocktail into glass and with a piece of orange zest, squeeze to express the orange oils over the cocktail, rub the edge of the glass with the zest and drop it in.