Yesterday we met Rich Heider, the wealth of knowledge working behind the bar at the new Casablance Lounge in Old Town Scottsdale. Today he shares with us the recipe for the Japanese Revival, a drink Heider says is a good jumping-off point for the different things he does there.
"We kind of had a theme we wanted to do, and we just kept this one Japanese," Heider says. " The Horin sake is one of the most polished sakes you can find. Yuzu is a Japanese citrus -- kind of a cross between a lemon and a grapefruit. And of course there's Midori."
The verdant cocktail's citrusy, with an enticing herbal backbone and not a hint of boozy heat.
"We decided on the Japanese Revival name because all the names I suggested were kind of ... inappropriate," Heider says. "I was thinking something like the Nuclear Reactor, because of the color. But Japanese Revival is better."
The ingredients:
Yamazaki 12yr Japanese whiskey
3/4 oz Horin sake
3/4 oz Lillet blanc
3/4 oz Midori
3/4 oz Yuzu (Japanese citrus)
Twist lemon peel
How to make it:
Mix the Horin, Lillet, Midori and Yuzu in an ice-filled shaker. Shake well and strain into a chilled martini glass that's been rinsed with the Yamazaki. Twist a lemon peel over the liquid and drop it in. Kampai.
