Receta Salty Dog: Not a Surfer or a Pirate
By Greg Henry
Riff on a Salty Dog. That’s either an entirely perfect name for this cocktail or merely a lazy moniker. After all, half the fun of a terrific cocktail is a terrific name. Fuzzy Navel, Monkey Gland, Goats Delight. You get the idea.
So when I post an original cocktail here on this blog I struggle between giving it a SEO friendly name, or being clever enough that you’d wish you were me (just so you could crack yourself up)! I mean I could have called this drink a Grapefruit Guzzler, or something as esoteric as Imperfect God. But I didn’t.
I didn’t want to be guilty of that crime when I developed this drink. So, while it would have been easy to call it Grapefruit-Infused Gin, with Cocchi Americano and Elderflower (which is very SEO friendly and exactly what this drink is). I thought it would be best to simply call it Riff on a Salty Dog. It sounds both sophisticated and whimsical. Plus I think it adequately prepares you for what’s in the glass. That is if you understand what a riff is and are familiar with a Salty Dog.
So here’s a little history.
In the lexicon of Southern California dudes, a Salty Dog is an old surfer. If you’re a 10 year-old boy, a Salty Dog is one who plunders the open sea and screams “aye matey” whenever possible. Neither of these salty dogs are the dog to which I refer.
To me a Salty Dog is a classic cocktail of gin and grapefruit juice served in a salt-rimmed glass. I believe it’s well enough known to the drinkers among us to need very little explanation.
When I say riff, I want you to know I have never been to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where I’m sure they consider the riff to be a short, repetitive pattern of notes (sometimes called a lick).
In that case, I guess I really should call this cocktail Riff on a Riff on a Salty Dog because I first encountered something similar served up by Gabriella Mlynarczyk, at Chef Michael Voltaggio’s Ink restaurant here in Los Angeles. Gabriella was a contributor to my Savory Cocktails book, so I follow everything she does closely. GREG
Ingredients
- 1 lemon wedge
- lightly crushed Maldon smoked sea salt (as needed)
- 2 ounce Oro Blanco grapefruit infused gin (see note)
- 1 ounce freshly squeezed Oro Blanco grapefruit
- ½ ounce Cocchi Americano
- ½ ounce St. Germain elderflower liqueur
- ½ ounce simple syrup
- 1 dash Miracle Mile yuzu bitters
Directions
Use the lemon wedge to lightly moisten the rim of a chilled coupe glass. Pour the salt onto a small saucer, spreading it out in a thin but consistent layer. Press the rim into the salt, cookie cutter style, twisting it back and forth the get a nice evenly coated rim; set aside.
Add the gin, grapefruit juice, Cocchi Americano, St. Germain, simple syrup, and bitters to a cocktail shaker ⅔ filled with ice. Cover and shake. Strain into the prepared glass.
Serve immediately.
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Notes
Use a vegetable peeler to remove the peels (without any white pith) of 2 Oro Blanco grapefruit . Place the peels into a large jar with a lid. Pour in 2 cups gin and infuse in a cool dark place for at least 2 days, turning and rolling the jar occasionally. This makes more infused gin than you need for 1 cocktail.
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