Let’s Toast to Almost Spring with Silky Yamazaki Mizuwari by Leigh Clarke from ‘Tokyo Bar’

Let’s toast to almost Spring with Yamazaki Mizuwari from Tokyo Bar: 65 Recipes for Japanese-Style Cocktails & Izakaya Snacks, published by Ryland Peters & Small (Photography by Alex Luck © Ryland Peters & Small).

“In Japanese culture, bartending is regarded as an art form and much pride is taken in perfecting the craft. Drinks are mixed with precision, and the focus is on clean, well-balanced flavors.“

Yamazaki Mizuwari Recipe by Leigh Clarke

Big tropical fruit notes feature in this drink, along with an almost silky mouthfeel. The soda also heightens the aromas of toasted nuts and dried fruits in the whisky.

Ingredients:

50 ml/1 2⁄3 fl oz. Yamazaki 12 Year Old Whisky

Soda water, to top up

Dehydrated pineapple slice, to garnish

Directions:

Fill a thin highball glass to the top with ice. Gently pour in the whisky and slowly stir 13 1⁄2 times. If the ice level drops, add more ice to fill the glass. Top up gently with soda water,

Pouring down a bar spoon to protect the bubbles. Lightly stir the drink to combine the ingredients and garnish with a dehydrated pineapple slice.

Toasting Spring 2 Days Early for Tokyo Thursdays # 332

( Excerpted from Tokyo Bar: 65 Recipes for Japanese-Style Cocktails & Izakaya Snacks, published by Ryland Peters & Small, March 2025 (Photography by Alex Luck © Ryland Peters & Small)