Orgeat Syrup Recipe

While I am far from the first person to venture into this realm, I wanted to add my fairly simple but tasty recipe to the crowd.

•2:1 ratio of blanched almonds to water, by volume
•1/4 tsp almond extract

Toast the almonds until fragrant, but not burnt. Blast the almonds into little pieces with a food processor. Simmer the almonds and water together at very low heat for an hour or two. By that point there should be an obvious layer of extracted oils from the almonds floating on top of the mixture. Strain the mixture through a tight mesh sieve or cheese cloth to remove the solids.

At that point, you should check to see how much volume you have. It'll probably be about half the volume of water you put in. Mix the almond milk you've just made 1:1 with simple syrup. Toss in a bit of vodka or grain alcohol if you like so that it will keep longer.

This syrup has a really great toasted almond flavor. Additionally, I find that it works well to smooth out rougher flavors and also gives just a bit of frothy head to shaken drinks. One drink in that vein is on Death & Co's menu. I had to guess at the proportions, but it turned out to be quite tasty.

Fix Me Up

1-1.25 oz Rittenhouse rye whiskey

0.5 oz Lustau Oloroso sherry

0.5 oz lemon juice

0.5 oz orange juice

0.25 oz simple syrup

0.5 oz orgeat syrup

1 dash Fee’s Old Fashioned Bitters

Combine all ingredients, shake with ice and strain into a chilled glass.

This is a great cocktail to sit and sip. Even with a fairly healthy dose of simple and orgeat syrups, it manages to be balanced, even edging towards being dry. The nutty flavor of the Oloroso sherry and the orgeat fit rather well with the spicy flavors of the rye whiskey. The herbal notes of the bitters also fit well with the rye grain flavors, while the juices give the drink a bit of snap. While I have no clue how this compares to the drink made at D&C, I'm pretty pleased with how this turned out.