Wiggly Bridge's Distillery's Julie Makes us a Blueberry Bourbon Smash

 

A couple of weeks ago Dan and I made another visit to Wiggly Bridge Distillery to pick up our first bottles of their New England Single Malt Whisky.  While we were there, we took advantage of the opportunity to try out some of the excellent cocktails they make at the Wiggly Bridge bar, one of which was a really delicious and refreshing drink called the Blueberry Bourbon Smash - the distillery's own take on the classic Whiskey Smash made with their own Small Batch Bourbon.

History of the Whiskey Smash

The whiskey smash is a variant of the Mint Julep credited largely to the 19th century bartender Jerry Thomas, in part because it's first print mention was in his Bartender's Guide, Bon Viviant's Companion first printed in 1862.  In this first edition of the book Thomas referred to the drink as Julep, changing the name to the Whiskey Smash by the time the 1887 second edition was released.

The initial whiskey smash recipe called for muddled lemon, simple syrup, and muddled mint, with the muddled fruit being the primary difference between the Whiskey Smash and the standard Mint Julep.  Over the years, bartender's have frequently riffed on this base recipe by changing out either the base spirit, the variety of fruit, or by substituting alternative herbs such as rosemary or basil for mint.  By using blueberries, agave syrup, and Wiggly Bridge Distillery's distinctive ultra high rye bourbon, the distillery has created a uniquely Maine twist on this classic cocktail.

However you choose to riff on the Whiskey Smash, the use of fruit and herbs makes it an excellent entry-level whiskey cocktail that may change the mind of the whiskey skeptics among your friends. 

Julie Makes us Wiggly Bridge's Blueberry Bourbon Smash

Wiggly Bridge's recipe calls for pouring the finished cocktail over crushed ice, which Julie did the "old fashioned way" by putting ice in a canvas bag and pounding on if for a couple of minutes with a rubber mallet.  

This all sounds very quaint and authentic until you watch her make five of them for people arount the bar - it must get pretty tiring!  I felt pretty bad about asking her to make us another one, but she was a great sport about that, and letting us record her making it for us. Huge thanks to her for this video:

With Spring upon us, its time to start thinking about those warm weather cocktails, and this is a great one to try.

Blueberry Bourbon Smash Recipe

Here's the complete rundown on Wiggly Bridge's Blueberry Bourbon Smash in writing:

• Handful of fresh blueberries
• Fresh mint
• Dollop of agave syrup
• 2 Oz Wiggly Bridge Small Batch Bourbon
• 1/2 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
• Gentle Squeeze of simple syrup

Muddle the blueberries, mint and agave in the bottom of a pint glass, then add the remaining ingredients and shake with ice until the shaker is frosty. Double strain the liquid over crushed ice in a rocks glass.  Garnish with fresh mint and blueberries.

Julie tells us that using Maine Wild Blueberries instead of larger cultivated blueberries requires less simple syrup, because the berries themselves are sweeter.  

Blueberry Bourbon Smash (L) and a Wiggly Old Man (R).

Closing Thoughts

Wiggly Bridge's Blueberry Bourbon Smash has a nicely balanced mix of sweet and sour flavors, and is a whiskey cocktail with a more subtle bourbon flavor backing up its fruity front end.  It quite nicely lives up to the whiskey smash's reputation as a whiskey cocktail that is approachable for non-whiskey drinkers.  On the other hand, it also has enough whiskey flavor backing it up that it makes for a nice, refreshing warm weather drink for whiskey enthusiasts. 

We hope you give this one a try and enjoy it as much as we did!  

Cheers!