How to: Make Smoked Cocktail Garnishes for Extra Flavorful Drinks

created at: 12/03/2014

Looking to add a little of the “roasting on open fire” flavor to some of your seasonal libations? Check out this cool technique for making smoked cocktail garnishes to add some toasty, earthy notes to your drinks.    

Creative studio The Jewels of New York suggests placing a singed, smoking rosemary sprig in the glass, to add aroma and flavor to the drink. Here, they've paired with warm, spicy flavors like mezcal and allspice dram. We could see this working in a lot of places – anything with whiskey, tequila, or rum should be a good place to start. Besides rosemary, consider other toast-able, edible things like thyme and cinnamon sticks.

Or, to add other kinds of good, charred flavor, consider charring citrus in a grill pan or cast iron skillet, or using ingredients like smoked olives or rimming a glass in smoked salt.

Or if you want to go all out and smoke the entire drink, ManMade has you covered with a complete tutorial: How to: Make Your Own DIY Smoked Cocktails 

Check out the technique and get the full drink recipe at The Jewels of New York: Sleepy Hollow Cocktail