6 Cocktails With Flavors of Yuzu
courtesy Yuzuri
These unique citrusy drinks with flavors of yuzu will brighten summer sipping.
“The love child of a lemon and mandarin with hints of grapefruit” is how Ann Soh Woods describes yuzu. Last year the founder of Soh Spirits released Yuzuri, a liqueur produced in Kumamoto, Japan using the whole yuzu fruit—peel seeds and all—steeped in a spirit made with local rice and mountain water. Yuzu might just be the upbeat, happiness-inducing ingredient we could all use right about now. “There is no one way to describe yuzu but once you have tried it, you immediately realize why it is held in such high esteem,” she says.
Try this unique citrus in these cocktails that use it in various iterations: liqueur, flavored vodka, juice, cordial and tonic. If you can’t find whole yuzu, bottled juice can be found in specialty markets and online.
Yuzuri Spritz
Recipe courtesy of Yuzuri Liqueur
“Yuzu is a bright citrus that is altogether softly sweet, sour and gently tart and has a high level of vitamin C,” says Woods. It’s also one of those versatile ingredients that can be used in both savory and sweet cocktails—just like it’s used in the kitchen for both ponzu sauce and miso soup as well as sweets and jams. Yuzuri is fabulous in this Spritz riff, but she also recommends it neat, chilled or in a Whiskey Sour/Margarita mash-up with Kikori whiskey, lime, sweetener and a yuzu salt rim.
1 oz. Yuzuri Liqueur
¼ oz. Giffard Apricot Liqueur
¾ oz. dry vermouth
½ oz. lemon juice
1 oz. soda water
2 oz. chilled Prosecco or sparkling sake
shiso leaf, for garnish
Add the liqueurs, dry vermouth and lemon juice to a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a Collins glass over fresh ice, top with soda water, and Prosecco or sparkling sake, and garnish with the shiso leaf.
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courtesy The Robey
Do You Yuzu?
Recipe courtesy of Vanessa Beaderstadt, Director of Bars, The Robey Hotel, Chicago, IL
“Yuzu has a unique flavor profile that is a cross between a grapefruit and sweet orange [or] mandarin,” Beaderstadt says. “It’s hard to find [whole] but is versatile in cocktails with balanced acidity.” She likes to pair it with other citrus, stone fruits like apricots, and spice like black pepper, as well as fruit-forward Italian liqueurs and Japanese whiskey. This drink gets a quadruple dose of citrus with yuzu vodka, orange-y Aperol, tangerine and lemon. She also recommends using yuzu as a substitute for lime in classics like the Cosmo or Gimlet.
1 oz. Effen Yuzu Vodka
½ oz. Aperol
1 ½ oz. freshly-squeezed tangerine juice (use orange juice if tangerines are unavailable)
¼ oz. lemon juice
¼ oz. mint syrup (instructions follow)
mint sprig and dehydrated lemon wheel, for garnish
Add all ingredients except garnish to a large wine glass, add crushed ice and stir until well-chilled. Stir gently and garnish with the mint sprig and dehydrated lemon wheel.
Mint Syrup:
Add 4 tablespoons sugar and 4 tablespoons water to a saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and add a sprig of mint. Steep for 10 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Remove the mint and store the syrup in the refrigerator for up to a week.
courtesy Lupo Verde
Cherry Blossom Iced Tea
Recipe courtesy of Lupo Verde, Washington, D.C.
The color of this refreshing and seasonally-inspired cocktail that had been on the menu at the southern Italian restaurant represents the cherry blossoms that the city is awash in every spring. “Yuzu can help you to make a cocktail extraordinary because it’s not a simple citrus,” says Attilio Larosa, director of operations for Lahlou Restaurant Group. “Yuzu has the same aromas and color to a Mandarin orange or a lemon [and] pairs well with white spirits and tropical flavors.”
½ oz. Cointreau
½ oz. tequila blanco
½ oz. gin
½ oz. vodka
¾ oz. fresh yuzu juice
1 oz. cherry simple syrup (instructions follow)
cocktail cherry, for garnish (for instructions on how to make your own cocktail cherries, please click here)
Add all ingredients except garnish to a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a Collins glass over fresh ice and garnish with the maraschino cherry.
Cherry Simple Syrup:
Using a bag of cherry tea (like Harney & Sons Cherry Blossom Tea), and brew a cup of tea. While the tea is still hot, add 1 oz. of tea to 2 tablespoons white sugar until the sugar dissolves.
Argyle Street
courtesy Time Out Market
Time Out Market, Chicago, IL
For this libation inspired by Chi-Town’s late summer Thursday Night Market, beverage director Jonathan Kahn wanted to fuse an agave-style Margarita with the tropical flavors found in southeast Asian countries like Thailand, where night markets are an integral part of the culture. “Because it's not a recognizable citrus to most palates, I enjoy using it in cocktails as a replacement for lemon to add some more depth,” Kahn says. “It's bright, slightly sour, and has an umami-like quality that you can't find in common citrus.”
1 ¾ oz. tequila blanco
½ oz. Rare Tea Cellar Lychee Noir Tea Syrup (or follow the instructions for the Cherry Simple Syrup above, subbing a lychee flavored tea for the cherry tea)
2 dashes Mr. Lee’s Ancient Chinese Secret Bitters (or sub with Angostura)
½ oz. lime juice
1 ½ oz. (or enough to top) East Imperial Yuzu Tonic
lime wheel, optionally coated in Wild Hibiscus Flower Pyramid Salt Flakes, for garnish
Add all ingredients except tonic and garnish to a highball glass. Fill the glass with crushed ice and, using a bar spoon, mix the ingredients together for 10 to 15 seconds. Top with freshly-crushed ice and fill with tonic until glass is full. Take a fresh lime wheel, coat one side with hibiscus salt and lay it on the edge of the glass so that half of it is sitting on top of the liquid and ice. Add a paper or metal straw if desired.
courtesy Anthem
EXSW Margarita
Recipe courtesy of Anthem, Austin, TX
Food and beverage manager Dustin Fox says this libation, whose name is inspired by the city’s SXSW festival, “is an ode to our Austin roots, inspired by the variety of friendship and the unexpected combinations that make our home so special.” He prizes yuzu for its intense floral aroma and versatility. “The zest is more fragrant than domestic citrus with a pleasant astringency like that of Kaffir Lime, while the juice is puckeringly tart and slightly sweet with notes of honey.”
¾ oz. tequila reposado
¾ oz. tequila blanco
½ oz. lime juice
½ oz. yuzu juice
½ oz. yuzu purée (available at specialty stores and online)
1 oz. blood orange juice
1 oz. sake
orange slice and mint sprig, for garnish
Add all ingredients except garnish to a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice and garnish with the orange slice and mint sprig.
courtesy Zizi
Margaret
Recipe courtesy of Lirian Leibman, Executive Chef and Beverage Director, Zizi, New York, NY
Leibman’s twist on the classic Margarita was inspired by vibrant global citrus. “The result is a drink that is a journey of smoke and citrus, and a tribute to ancient heritage and traditions around the world, including the Middle East,” he says. “Yuzu is both sweet and tart… and adds a nice acidity and slight sweetness to drinks without overpowering other flavors.”
2 oz. mezcal joven (Liebman uses Peletón de la Muerte)
¼ oz. agave syrup
2 dashes Bittermens Orange Cream Bitters
½ oz. yuzu juice
½ oz. lime juice
½ tsp preserved lemon juice (can substitute with ½ oz. lemon juice)
coarse salt and lime wedge, for rimming glass
lime wedge, for garnish
Rub the lime wedge on half the outside of the rim of a rocks glass and dip in coarse salt to rim. Add all ingredients except garnish to a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake until well-chilled. Double-strain into the prepared glass over fresh ice and garnish with the lime wedge.
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