Right then ladies and gentlemen. Time for week’s #MasterofCocktails, featuring a Brandy Crusta recipe – a real life classic. This is a smashing drink, first brought to my attention by the superb @AdamsBitters.
Before we get started, here are 2 tips on the Brandy Crusta:
1) Drink more of them.
2) Don’t order one in a bar where it’s not on the menu.
Got it? Good. The key to this drink is the garnish, which we will be preparing a couple of hours in advance before actually putting the drink together.
List of Ingredients
- 40ml of Hine Rare VSOP Cognac
- 20ml of Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
- 2 good dashes of Angostura Bitters
- Sugar Syrup
- Sugar
- Lemons
As I said, an absolutely huge part of this drink is the garnish – basically a whole lemon with the ends cut off, hollowed out.
So – find yourself a lemon, and a glass that it fits into very snugly. Thus.
Snug. See.
Start by whipping both ends off it…
Now completely hollow it out. Remove all the flesh, so you’re just left with the pith and peel.
Take the hollowed lemon and really jam it into the glass. You’re going to be drinking *through* the garnish…
…so do make sure it’s completely watertight if you can.
Next, you’re going to need to grab a small plate, and tip some sugar syrup into it.
Roll the whole garnish, and the top of the glass in the syrup, then dip it into caster sugar.
Pay special attention to the join between the glass and the lemon – use the sugar like caulk.
And there you have it – all ready, it’ll need a couple of hours to harden.
After a couple of hours, here it is.
From here, it’s very simple really. Start with 40ml of Cognac. I’m using the excellent Hine Rare VSOP Cognac.
That goes into a shaker, followed by 20ml Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao.
Then 10ml Fresh Lemon Juice…
And 2 good dashes of Angostura Bitters.
Now pack the shaker with ice, and give it a good 30 seconds…
Single strain (we’ve not frozen the glass) into the finished glass…
And before serving, express a lemon peel over the top. Trust me on this last bit.
The Brandy Crusta. Fancy.
Enjoy!
Tune in on Sunday, where we will be using these ingredients for more #MasterofCocktails excitement.
Next week, you’ll be needing these…
Old Tom Gin, Noilly Prat Original Dry, Bénédictine D.O.M. Liqueur, Regan’s Orange Bitters No. 6 and an Orange.
Ben
Anthony (Lorren) Roberts