Spirited Conversations: Use umami to elevate cocktails

The word “umami” translates to “deliciousness” in Japanese, more specifically the pleasant savory flavors found in foods like dashi, Parmesan cheese and mushrooms.

This fifth flavor (after salty, sweet, sour and bitter) is commonly known in Japanese culture, but was only brought to Western attention in 1908, when a chemist in Tokyo found that it could be quantified industrially — and thus monosodium glutamate, commonly called MSG, was born.

Glutamate, an amino acid, produces a savory quality in dishes cooked for a long time in order to develop these flavors.

This concept can be applied to cocktails in various ways. Here are a few ways to infuse your drinks with umami-rich goodness that will have your guests asking, “What is in this?”

JAPANESE WHISKY has exploded like no other. Suntory has an incredibly approachable version that won’t break the bank, though it can be hard to acquire.

Toki, or “Time,” an easy-going blend of old and new whiskies, is perfect for highballs and cocktails. This version of a buck, or mule, incorporates an incredibly savory syrup of miso and dashi.

I like to add a hint of smoke with a peaty scotch that pairs so well with the saltiness of the syrup. The spice in the ginger beer wraps it all together with effervescence.

FIFTH SENSE

By Chandra Lucariello

• 1/2 ounce lemon juice
• 1/2 ounce miso-dashi syrup (recipe follows)
• 1-1/2 ounces light-style Japanese whisky (like Suntory Toki)
• 1/4 ounce peat-forward scotch (like Laphroaig 10-year)
• Ginger beer (like Fever Tree), as needed
• Combine lemon juice, syrup and liquors to highball glass. Fill with ice; top with ginger beer.
• Garnish: Lemon twist and star anise pod
• Miso Dashi Syrup
• 1 cup bonito dashi stock
• 2 cups raw cane sugar
• 2 tablespoons white miso

Bring dashi to a boil. Add sugar; stir to dissolve. Add miso through fine mesh sieve and let cool completely. Keep refrigerated.

I CREATED this next cocktail for a Japanese whisky cocktail dinner. It’s a play on an Old-Fashioned, pumped with umami.

I paired it with a five-spice braised short rib, and I needed something big enough to stand up to the dish, but with some complexity to cut through the fat. The shiitake added just enough earthiness to give the whisky some depth, and the smoke from the scotch added another layer of flavor that paired beautifully.

Many commented after the dinner that it was the pairing of the night.

FINDING ZEN

By Chandra Lucariello

• 1-1/2 ounces shiitake- infused whisky (see below)
• 1/2 ounce Islay single malt (like Lagavulin 16-year)
• 1/4 ounce herb-forward amaro liqueur (like Fernet)
• 1/2 ounce Five-Spice Syrup (recipe below)
• Splash water

Combine ingredients in mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain over large ice cube into bucket glass.

>> To makle Shiitake-infused whisky: Pour 1 bottle light-style Japanese whisky (like Kikori) over 1-1/2 cups dried shiitake mushrooms; let sit 24 hours. Strain into clean container, squeezing mushrooms in cheesecloth to extract whisky.

>> Garnish: Korean seasoned nori and gold origami crane

FIVE-SPICE SYRUP

By Chandra Lucariello

• 10 star anise pods
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
• 2 tablespoons cardamom seeds
• 2 tablespoons black peppercorns
• 4 large chunks ginger, smashed
• 2 cups water
• 4 cups sugar

Combine dried spices in pot; toast over medium heat until fragrant. Add ginger and water; bring to boil.

Add sugar; simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. Strain into clean container.

THE PALOMA in its classic form (tequila, lime, grapefruit soda and salt) continues to be one of my ultimate favorite cocktails for its quaffability and ease.

Grapefruit is a great way to add a slight bitterness while keeping the drink refreshing and summery. Making your own salted grapefruit cordial takes it up a notch and also can be used with a squeeze of lime and club soda for a wonderful nonalcoholic drink.

PALOMA FLEUR

By Chandra Lucariello

• 3/4 ounce lime juice
• 1 ounce salted grapefruit cordial (recipe below)
• 2 ounces blanco tequila (like Casamigos or Fortaleza)
• 1/4 ounce elderflower liqueur (like St. Germain)

Combine lime juice, cordial and liquors in mixing glass with ice. Shake and strain over ice into bucket glass.

>> Garnish: Grapefruit peel and chile de arbol pepper on bar pick

SALTED GRAPEFRUIT CORDIAL

By Chandra Lucariello

• Peels from 1 large ruby-red grapefruit
• 1 cup sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• 2 ounces hot water
• 4 ounces fresh grapefruit juice
• 2 ounces fresh lime juice

Bury grapefruit peels in sugar; refrigerate 24 hours.

Dissolve salt in hot water; cool.

Add juices and cooled salt water to grapefruit-sugar mix. Strain; refrigerate up to 3 weeks.

The Garden of Eden uses sherry, which I am loving in cocktails right now. Amontillado adds a salinity and slight nuttiness that complements the muddled grape tomato and basil.

The combination creates a perfect aperitivo, almost like a fresh, light Bloody Mary.

GARDEN OF EDEN

By Chandra Lucariello

• 2 basil leaves
• 6 grape tomato halves
• 1/2 ounce lemon juice
• 1/2 ounce simple syrup (1 part sugar dissolved in 1-part water)
• Pinch sea salt
• 1-1/4 ounce citrus-forward gin (like Aviation or Plymouth)
• 3/4 ounce blanc vermouth (like Cocchi Americano)
• 1/2 ounce amontillado sherry
• Club soda, as needed

Muddle (crush) basil and tomatoes in mixing glass with lemon juice-, simple syrup and salt. Add liquors, fill glass with ice, then shake and strain into highball glass. Top with club soda; stir.

>> Garnish: Thin grape tomato wheels floating and basil sprig

Nutritional information unavailable.

Chandra Lucariello is director of mixology for Southern Glazers Wine & Spirits of Hawaii. Ingredient note: The liquors and liqueurs used in these recipes are widely available from Oahu liquor stores and some supermarkets.