The Wayward Spirit
Cocktail Recipe and Photography by Alexander Avita
Howdy! I'm Alexander Avitia, the newest bartender of the historic Fairmount Hotel in downtown San Antonio.
The recipe I have for you is a love letter to autumn, an admiration for the culinary uniqueness of this season's harvests, and an ode to my favorite show to watch at this time of year, Over the Garden Wall. In a corny way, producing this cocktail recipe embodies the very same curiosity and unusual self-expression that led me onto this path in the first place. I present to you The Wayward Spirit.
A variation of the old fashioned, this libation leads with a base of prosciutto fat-washed bourbon boasting umami-savory notes, harmonized with a semi-rich turbinado syrup infused with fresh figs in the prime of their season. Angostura and black walnut bitters lend their respective strengths to ground the ensemble with earth and nuttiness.Don't let the simplicity of this build fool you; as they say, “the devil's in the details”. Anyone can learn to make an old fashioned in 30 seconds, but that's not the goal here. I want to teach the process of fat-washing a spirit, the importance of ingredient choice, and the joy of exploration. Let me lead you into the unknown.
Craft cocktail bartending was, for me, a destined pursuit, prophesied when I was only five years old and making abhorrent “potions” in my closet with any ingredient I could reach in both fridge and pantry (sorry, mom). Every day behind the bar is an opportunity to learn something, whether it's proper shake technique, adding complexity to a flavor profile, or the fact that hiding inedible concoctions in your room for a long while will yield bad results.
The point is, making drinks is easy to learn, but it can take a lifetime to master all of the nuances involved. Being asked to tend bar six years ago was truly an honor to both myself and inner child; my peers saw potential in me, and I've learned something new every day since then.
Ingredients
This amount will yield 4 cocktails.
3–5 oz prosciutto, or meat with similar fat content
8 oz choice of bourbon or rye (I’m using Basil Hayden)
3–4 fresh figs
12 oz turbinado (or Demerara) sugar
Process
Fat-washed bourbon
Slice prosciutto, or chosen meat, and place cuts on a pan in the oven at 120°F for roughly 30 minutes or until the fat begins to melt, but not cook through.
Transfer meat into a container and add bourbon with a ratio of 1-2 oz fat to 1 cup bourbon. You may save some cutlets to use as garnish if you wish.
Seal the container and leave at room temperature for an hour, agitating (shaking) often.
Once agitated for a while, place the mixture in a freezer for at least 24 hours.
The mixture should have separated all of the fat to the top of the container. Strain thoroughly through either a cheesecloth or coffee filter, and clamp your filter so that the bourbon may slowly drip through.
Fig Turbinado syrup
Begin to heat 8oz of water to a boil.
Separately, cut 2-3 figs into halves, and then slices. Leave a spare for garnish later.
Let your sliced figs sit in 12oz of turbinado or Demerara sugar and seal the container. Let them mingle for at least one hour at room temperature while agitating often.
Once your sugar and figs are well-acquainted and the sugar looks mostly damp, add your boiling water to the sugar and begin to mix thoroughly. Stir until all of the sugar has dissolved. This makes a semi-rich syrup at a ratio of 1.5:1 sugar to water and adds viscosity.
Seal the syrup while leaving one small opening to let out steam, then leave out at room temperature until cool enough to store in the fridge. Let it chill overnight.
After, use a mesh strainer to double-strain the figs from the syrup. You may use the candied figs as-is or dehydrate them and use for garnish.
Building the Wayward Spirit
2 oz fat-washed bourbon
¼ oz semi-rich fig syrup
2 dashes walnut bitters
1 dash Angostura bitters
(optional) 1 orange
Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with ice and quickly stir until the glass begins to look chilled, roughly 6-8 seconds.
Strain into a double rocks glass over fresh ice or a big ice cube.
Optionally, you may cut an orange peel to express the oils onto the cocktail, and discard the peel.
Using a pick, stab your choice of garnish: fresh fig slice, candied fig slice, prosciutto, or a combination. Place on top in an appealing manner.
Adjust the recipe to your personal taste, and enjoy!
Finally, I would like to thank my fellow bartender Chrissy Olvera for pitching the cocktail idea and letting me refine it, chef Luca Della Casa for guidance and inspiration, and the Fairmount Hotel as a whole for their ingredient contribution to this project. Cheers! ■
