A “Killer” Calamansi & Whiskey Cocktail

Happy Halloween everyone!  Tokyo guys and gals are busy gearing up their costumes for parties this weekend (and some don’t even have to dress up since their daily outfits are so out there already!) and hubs’ school just had its big Halloween parade yesterday, so here’s a simple new cocktail that’s so good, it could kill…(insert scary bad-guy laugh here).

This cocktail was made with my dad and husband in mind. I guess as far as important people go they rank pretty highly on the list.  This cocktail features whiskey and a southern Asian citrus called Calamansi. With a flavor reminiscent of a more refined whiskey sour and its gentle orange color, this cocktail is perfect for any Halloween themed party.  I also didn’t go nuts with eyeballs (skinless grapes) or a licorice stick, so you could whip this up just as easily for Friday evening with your friends.

My husband confidently exclaimed that this was his favorite cocktail that I have made thus far. Keep in mind that he, like my dad (probably because of my dad), is a big fan of whiskey on its own and neither of them really are the “cocktail type.”

I used a middle-of-the-road Japanese whiskey from Suntory, but feel free to try your favorite bottle to mingle with the citrus and slight sweetness from the honey. Calamansi are a tiny green citrus with a sour orange-colored flesh. (You can read a bit more about them at one of my favorite blogs, Rasa Malaysia.)The half you see in the drink below is actually frozen- they work great as ice cubes!

Calamansi can be hard to find, but some easy substitutions are lemon, lime, orange (for that halloween color) or even a little combo of different citrus flavors. Experiment with your favorite potions…(again, insert scary guy laugh here).

A “Killer” Whiskey Cocktail

Makes 2 cocktails

6 oz whiskey

juice of 2-3 calamansi OR 1/2 a lemon, lime or orange

1 tablespoon honey

ice

Frozen citrus halves for garnish (instructions follow the cocktail recipe)

Combine the ingredients in a cocktail shaker (minus the ice) and stir to dissolve the honey. Add the ice….shake-ah shakity shake…pour….drink. Killer.

Frozen citrus halves:

Cut your choice of citrus in half or into quarters (for larger citrus you may need to go even smaller to make sure they fit in the glass you are using). Wrap the citrus in saran wrap and place in the freezer for at least 4 hours and up to 8. When ready to use, unwrap them and plop them in your drink! They also make great ice cubes to fancy up your ice water.

Tagged as: citrus, Cocktails, Kalamansi, whiskey