burning ice

1 1/2 oz Laphroaig 10 Year Scotch
3/4 oz Pedro Ximenez Sherry
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Swedish Punsch
1 barspoon Kübler Absinthe
2 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass.

While I was drinking my Front Street at No. 9 Park, bartender Ted Kilpatrick was working the restaurant floor. He came by and mentioned his frustrations of serving drinks at the Whisky Live event and how many of the people there did not get his cocktail. Some of the guests had two problems with his drink, the Burning Ice. The first I could see, since not everyone likes fennel-anise flavors. The second was more absurd when they complained about the smoke notes given that it was at a Scotch event after all. While he made the drink at the event with Ardbeg, they were making it at No. 9 with Laphroaig. With Scotch, lemon, Swedish Punsch, and absinthe, the drink reminded me the Modern Cocktail. So when it was time for my second drink, I asked bartender Sam Olivari for the Burning Ice.
The Scotch's smoke greeted my nose along with the absinthe's anise and hints of the sherry's grape. The lemon-grape sip had a thicker mouthfeel than I expected perhaps from the sherry's fullness. And the swallow was a combination of the smokey Scotch and rich sherry that was punctuated by light herbal notes from the absinthe and Peychaud's Bitters.