New Ceremony – Engel Yuzu Eau de Vie
The next eau de vie from Manuel Engel uses one of the most famous Japanese citrus fruits. There are not a lot of yuzu eau de vies out there. So, Manuel took a chance and added one to his portfolio. Naturally, I want to share my thoughts about it, along with a refreshing highball.
Similar to his grapefruit and clementine spirits, Manuel gets his Yuzus from Nules, Valencia. He macerates the grapefruit peel in neutral grain alcohol and then distils it. Finally, Manuel bottles the citrus eau de vie with an ABV of 42%.
A mandarin and lemon combo
The Yuzu eau de vie starts with some flavours reminiscent of mandarins with a touch of lemon. Additionally, you can find some “sweet” notes in combination with noticeable menthol. In the taste, the characteristic yuzu notes become more evident. Compared to the other citrus eau de vies in Manuel’s line up, the Yuzu is less smooth.
Vermouth and grapefruit
Manuel asked me if I could include dry vermouth in one of the drinks would create with his citrus eau de vie. Naturally I obliged and this is what I came up with: Dry vermouth, Yuzu and grapefruit lemonade. I wanted to contrast the herbal notes of the vermouth and the strong flavour profile of the citrus eau de vie with a lemonade which can stand up to both. Feel free to add a splash of bitters to the mix, but the recipe also works on its own.
0,75 cl Engel Yuzu Eau de Vie
Built – chilled highball glass over ice cubes – top off;
Garnish: Lemon Wedge;
Song: Dry the River – New Ceremony;
Luckily, the drink turned out exactly as I wanted it to. The herbal and slightly bitter flavours of the vermouth are smoothed out by the grapefruit lemonade. On top of that, the Yuzu eau de vie adds a layer of complexity and of course pairs perfectly with the soda.
*The fact that I received a product reviewed in this article for free, did not – in any way – influence the rating of said product. I received the eau de vie for free from Engel Naturbrennerei.
