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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 with juniper berries, botanicals, and alcohol. I used PARK Distillery Alpine Dry Gin.
Amontillado Sherry: This is a type of medium-dry fortified wine made in Spain with palomino grapes. I used Don Benigno Amontillado Sherry.
Lapsang Souchong Tea: This is a black tea that is smoke-dried over pinewood fire. I used Twinings Lapsang Souchong Black Tea.
Mushroom Honey Syrup: This is a sweetener made with baby portobello mushrooms, honey, and water. I made mine using this stovetop recipe.
Lemon Juice: This is the liquid juice of a lemon. I used freshly squeezed lemon juice.
Spruce & Birch Bitters: This is a food product made with spruce, birch, botanicals, herbs, and alcohol. I used Crude Bitters & Sodas “Apothecary” Spruce & Birch Bitters.
Rhubarb Bitters: This is a food product made with rhubarb, herbs, botanicals, and alcohol. I used Fee Brothers Rhubarb Bitters.
Baby Portobello Mushrooms: This is a miniature portobello mushroom.
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.
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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 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
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
Fangorn Forest
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.
Ingredients
Method
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Add gin, sherry, tea, mushroom honey syrup, lemon juice, bitters, and cubed ice to a shaker.
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Shake for 10-20 seconds.
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Strain into a highball glass over fresh cracked ice.
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Garnish with baby portobello mushroom slices.