The Irish drink it neat, a new make white spirit/moonshine that can’t be called whiskey. For many years, Poitín (pronounced potcheen) was declared illegal but the spirit has recently been granted Geographical Indicative Status by the EU much like champagne and Cognac.
Teeling’s Poitín is made from a blend of 80% triple-distilled corn spirit and 20% double-distilled malt and its ABV of 61.5% is not for the faint-hearted. The spirit is rough and raw with new make estery notes and hints of black pepper. The palate balances of grain and cereal notes with peppery spice and finishes rather short and sharp.
I was curious as to what purpose Poitín has aside from sipping it neat and how it can be applied in cocktails when bartender Evan Bushcomber Brown of The Wild Rover bar in Sydney came up with the idea of a Poitín Bloody Mary. In his recipe, he serves the drink in a silver tankard and garnishes it with a freshly-shucked oyster topped with Teeling Small Batch Irish Whiskey.
There are Bloody Mary’s and then there is a Poitín Bloody Mary. This recipe can easily be replicated at home. All you need is a bottle of the spirit and the hair of the dog.
Poitín Bloody Mary Recipe
Recipe by Evan Bushcomber Brown of The Wild Rover
Ingredients
- 30 ml of Teeling Poitín
- 90 ml of tomato juice
- 20 ml of lemon juice
- 3 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
- 3 dashes of Tabasco
- Salt and pepper
Glassware: silver tankard or highball
Garnish: oyster with Teeling Small Batch Whiskey, cucumber slice, lemon wedge
Method
Add all ingredients in a shaker. Tumble shake 8 times to mix thoroughly without much dilution. Strain into a silver tankard over fresh ice. Garnish with a cucumber slice, a wedge of lemon and an oyster doused with Teeling Single Batch Whiskey. Sprinkle black pepper over the oyster and enjoy.
