Hot Toddy — Warming whiskey cocktail with honey and lemon

Hot Toddy

Warming whiskey cocktail with honey and lemon

Number of people

Ingredients

  • 3/4 ozFresh Lemon Juice
    Fresh squeezed
    Substitute: Meyer lemon
  • 2 dashesAngostura Aromatic Bitters
    Traditional addition
    Substitute: Walnut bitters variant
  • 4 ozHot Water
    Just below boiling
    Substitute: Hot tea variant
  • 2 ozWhiskey
    Bourbon or Scotch
    Substitute: Irish whiskey acceptable
  • 1 tbspHoney
    Local honey preferred
    Substitute: Honey syrup 3/4 oz

Instructions

  1. Add 1 tbsp honey to Irish coffee glass or heat-proof mug
  2. Add 3/4 oz fresh lemon juice and 2 dashes Angostura bitters
  3. Add 2 oz whiskey
  4. Top with 4 oz hot water (just below boiling)

    Water temperature 85-90°C

  5. Stir gently until honey is fully dissolved
  6. Garnish with lemon wheel studded with cloves and cinnamon stick

Technique Notes

Hot water, not boiling. Boiling scalds the lemon and drives the spirit off, and the drink ends up smelling of steam rather than whiskey.

Why the Hot Toddy Works

Heat is what carries the aromatics: honey's floral notes, the oil off the lemon wheel, whiskey's vanilla and Angostura's clove all lift to the nose in a way they never would cold. Use hot water rather than boiling, which would scald the lemon and blow the spirit off. The structure is the old five-part one of acid, sugar, spirit, spice and water, and the bitters are what make it taste considered rather than thrown together.

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