Mike's Mix: Smoked Maple Old Fashioned From Brick And Bourbon

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Each week, Mike Augustyniak finds out what local mixologists are stirring up in the Twin Cities. This week, he went to Brick and Bourbon in Stillwater for a feast of the senses.

2 oz Knob Creek Single Barrel Bourbon
1 oz Real Maple Syrup
5 Dashes Regan's Orange Bitters
Blood Orange Peel
1 Slice Bacon
Eggo Mini Waffle
Oak Chip Smoke

Instructions:

Stir first 4 ingredients together over ice until chilled and diluted to your taste. Garnish with a rip of expressed Blood Orange peel, a slice of Bacon, and half of a mini Eggo Waffle.

While interesting on its own, the technique that makes this recipe shine is the addition of oak smoke. Smoking the cocktail will lend a unique nose and flavor to the entire drink and even the garnish.

Enclose the entire cocktail in a glass container such as a clean, upside-down vase or a cake platter. Use a smoke gun to generate a thick haze of smoke inside the glass container, and leave the cocktail for 2-3 minutes, or as long as you wish. Remove the cover, let the smoke dissipate, and enjoy.

The creator of this cocktail, Gary Sivyer, says "you have to use a good smoker;" they use a Breville smoke gun available for under $100 at many retailers.

Brick & Bourbon is an elevated eatery and craft libation venue that believes in using the freshest domestic and imported ingredients. With cocktails that are cheeky to classic to consequential there's an impeccably designed experience waiting for you in downtown Stillwater.