Banoffee Cobbler Cocktail
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Is it just me, or do all banana flavored things taste like chemicals and not at all like bananas? This Banana infused scotch uses real bananas to give this Banoffee Cobbler a slightly smoky, banana kick.
Amontillado Sherry and homemade chocolate coffee bitters add toffee and chocolate notes while coconut milk adds some rich body and creaminess. It’s the perfect dessert cocktail for scotch lovers.
I’ve always thought scotch has a very banana-forward nose to it. Whether it’s a freshly opened bottle, or a decanted scotch, I always get banana. Bananas are typically incorporated in drinks with rum or in a banana liquor, which never actually tastes like banana to me. So, I wanted to try to and see if I could blend the flavors of banana and scotch to create my own banana liqueur.
You’ll need the following equipment:
Bitters Ingredients:
Coffee Beans
Everclear
Ingredients:
Banana
Blended Scotch
Oloroso Sherry
Whipped Cream (optional)
Chocolate (optional)
What better way to test out this banana scotch than using it to make a tiki-ish dessert cocktail?
My Banoffee pie dessert cocktail is a creamy and dreamy riff on a Sherry Cobbler. Sherry Cobblers have fallen out of fashion over the past few decades, but they are really delicious cocktails that deserve their moment in the sun once again.
I will be using an amontillado sherry for this cocktail. This is one of my favorite styles of sherry for making cocktails because of its bold, toffee-like flavor. And when paired with banana, cacao and coffee, reminds me of one of my favorite desserts- banoffee pie. I will also be incorporating coconut milk for this recipe to add somebody and richness, also to dial up the tropical flavors.
For chocolate and coffee element, I will be using some homemade chocolate coffee bitters, but these take about a month to make, so store bought bitters work great here too.
To make my chocolate coffee bitters, I will be using 10 grams of cacao nibs, 5 grams of medium roast coffee, 2 ounces of cassia chips, and cherry bark. The last two ingredients are responsible for that bitterness and also the tannins.
I like to crush my coffee beans up just a bit- I find that this reduces the time it takes to infuse. Just be careful not to grind them too fine, as it will be hard to strain them out when the bitters are ready.
I am also breaking up the cacao nibs too, as the pieces were a bit large. After everything has been crushed, I add everything to a jar.
Next, I’m going to add 4 ounces of Everclear- over-proof whiskey like old grandad bonded whiskey would work too. Using an over- proof spirit will better extract the flavors from the hardier ingredients. You could use a neutral grain spirit like vodka, but your bitters won’t be as strongly flavored.
Since this needs to be stored in a dark cool place, I like to use a dark colored jar to help keep out the light. These need to sit for at least 3 weeks- I also like to agitate them every day, or every other day to speed things along.
Next up is the banana scotch, which is a much shorter process.
I’m using Dewar’s White Label for this infusion. I’ve tried this out with both a single malt scotch (Macallan 12) and a blended scotch (Dewar’s White Label), and I actually preferred the blended.
The most important part of making this banana scotch has got to be the bananas. They have to be JUST ripe, if the bananas are too ripe, it will be a mess to strain off, and if they aren’t ripe enough, the banana flavor is too weak.
For the amount of scotch, I’m using, I only need about 3/4 of a banana.
To start, I’m going to slice the banana into rounds about a quarter of on an inch thick.
Then place them into a bowl and cover the banana slices with four ounces of blended scotch. Cover the mixture and let this infuse for 24 hours. No need to agitate this infusion, any rough jostling will lead to a cloudier final product.
Once the 24-hour infusion period has passed, we will need to strain off the bananas. I like to decant it into a bottle and label it. Now this Banana Scotch is ready to use.
If you’d prefer a sweeter style, you could add some sugar to this, but I found the bananas imparted the right amount of sweetness for my taste.
This banana scotch should last for a few days at room temperature, but since there is some residual banana solids in there, I would recommend keeping it in a bottle in the fridge if you don’t plan on using within a week. Just keep in mind, this will mellow the flavors. Some separation is normal, and you can strain out the solids as they form by slowly pouring through a coffee filter. If you really want it clear, you can add a drop or 2 of pectinex and let it sit at room temperature for 20 minutes, then carefully strain out the sediment. For more information on using pectinex, see my Virgin Triple Sec post.
We are all set to make this Banoffee Cobbler. This cocktail calls for light coconut milk. I almost never buy light coconut milk because it just watered-down coconut milk that you could easily make at home.
To make your own light coconut milk, simply add 1 cup of filtered water to a room temperature can of coconut milk and whisk to combine.
First add one and a half ounces of light coconut milk to a mixing glass. Adding a thicker ingredient first is key. Since the thicker ingredient will often still be stuck inside the jigger. The subsequent less viscous ingredients will help to loosen the thicker ones, so you get the full amount of ingredients into the cocktail, and not stuck to your bar tools.
After the coconut milk, add 1.5oz of Amontillado sherry.
After the sherry, I’m going to add one and a half ounces of banana scotch
And lastly, I will add approximately 15 drops of the coffee and chocolate bitters.
Since this drink will be served over crushed ice, I will not be adding any ice to my mixing glass to stir.
Before pouring the cocktail in the glass, I’m going to garnish the inside with very thin rounds of bananas right around the middle of the glass. I find using the back of the bar spoon helps to keep them in place.
Then I will just add the crushed ice to keep those bananas in place and pour in the cocktail.
You could leave it right here, but I’m going to take it one step further and garnish with some whipped cream and some shaved dark chocolate on top. Here you have it, the Banoffee Cobbler.
It tastes remarkable close to a slice of banoffee pie, with just the slightest hint of smoke from the scotch which nicely balances the sweetness. This would be a great dessert drink, and even just a great tropical drink if you omit the whipped cream and chocolate shavings.
