Fangorn Forest

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Cocktail History

The Fangorn Forest is a Novel Nightcaps original cocktail that was created as part of a series of The Lord of the Rings recipes made in honor of the release of The Rings of Power, a prequel to the original movie trilogy. The drink was inspired by Treebeard, an Ent who was the oldest of the tree-like characters and a “shepherd of trees” from the original trilogy. As a nod to Treebeard’s eccentricity both in origin and dialogue, the cocktail starts with herbal gin and sherry as the base spirits and paired them with black tea, a unique mushroom honey syrup, citrus, and bitters to create a refreshing cooler that represents the ancient peoples of the forest well.

Cocktail Ingredients

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:

Gin: This is a spirit made by redistilling a neutral spirit with juniper berries and other botanicals to develop a distinctive, aromatic flavor.

Amontillado Sherry: This is a type of sherry made with white grapes, water, and yeast, which are fermented, fortified with brandy, and aged, first under flor yeast and then oxidatively, to develop a dry, nutty flavor.

Lapsang Souchong Tea: This is a type of black tea made with Camellia sinensis leaves that are smoke-dried over pine wood fires to develop a bold, smoky tea flavor.

Mushroom Honey Syrup: This is a sweetener made with portobello mushrooms, honey, and water, which are heated and infused into a syrup with a sweet, earthy flavor.

Lemon Juice: This is the liquid extracted from the flesh of ripe lemons that has a sweet, tangy flavor and light yellow color.

Spruce & Birch Bitters: This is a concentrated flavoring made with spruce needles, birch bark, herbs, spices, botanicals, and distilled alcohol, which are macerated or steeped to develop a slightly bitter, woodsy flavor.

Rhubarb Bitters: This is a concentrated flavoring made with rhubarb, herbs, spices, botanicals, and distilled alcohol, which are macerated or steeped to develop a tart, slightly bitter flavor.

Baby Portobello Mushrooms: This is a type of mushroom with a firm texture and a mild, earthy flavor that’s harvested at an early stage of growth.

Bartending Tools

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:

Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. I used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Boston Shaker: This is used to shake ingredients. I used the Boston shaker from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Hawthorne Strainer: This is used to strain out ice and solid ingredients after the cocktail is shaken. I used the A Bar Above Hawthorne Strainer.

Paring Knife: This is used to cut ingredients. I used the OXO Good Grips 3.5 Inch Paring Knife.

Juicer: This is used to juice citrus. I used the ALEEHAI Manual Fruit Juicer.

Cocktail Pick: This is used to hold the garnish. I used one from the Homestia Stainless Steel Cocktail Pick Set.

Tasting Notes

This cocktail has the following flavor profile:

• Appearance: Brown-ish yellow with an ombré effect

• Aroma: Earthy mushroom and tobacco

• Taste: Refreshing yet slightly tart flavor featuring a mashup of tea, gin botanicals, and honey

• Finish: Savory mushroom, sherry, and citrus

Kendall’s Take: “Out of the original cocktails inspired by The Lord of the Rings characters, this was definitely my favorite. It has such a unique blend of ingredients that’s not immediately clear what to expect for the drink’s flavor, but I found it to be a tasty mashup of earthy and herbal tastes with mushroom shining the most brightly. The sherry also peeks through a bit but not so much to turn me off since I don’t usually go for the stuff. If you’re looking for a drink with just the right umami flavor, the Fangorn Forest is a winner whether you understand the character reference or not.”

Recipe