Everything You Need To Know About Smoking Cocktails

Now that we've all had to become our own personal bartenders over the last year, we've had to really take our at-home cocktails to a new level, and an easy way to do that is smoking them. It may seem like a simple, perhaps even unnecessary thing to do, but we're here to tell you that it makes a world of difference. Haven't you ever been out at a bar watching a professional whip up something spectacular using a blowtorch? And don't those drinks almost always taste extra incredible? 

Maybe it's partly due to presentation, but smoke really does bring out something different and exciting in cocktails, and it's easy enough that you can add it to your home beverage regime without dropping a ton of money or having to take a class. All you really need to do this at home is a solid lighter, a cookie sheet, a mixing bowl, and some wood chips (via CNN). Alternatively, you can buy a kit online that comes with a mini blowtorch and a plank of wood (usually a piece of an old bourbon barrel), per The Spruce Eats.

Once you have all your supplies, it's time to start lighting things on fire. If you don't have any wood chips laying around your house, it's easy to source them online. CNN breaks it down into some easy steps for making your own smokey creation. Prepare whatever it is you want to smoke (herbs, a chilled glass, an entire cocktail, etc.), place the wood shavings on a cookie sheet (or just get the wood plank ready), light the wood chips or plank on fire, and quickly place whatever it is you're smoking near the smoke. 

If this is a glass, place the glass directly over the smoke. If it's a drink or something else, place the mixing bowl over the cocktail and the wood chips and allow a few minutes for the smoke to permeate the flavors of the beverage. Then lift the bowl, make sure the wood chips or plank is extinguished, and serve your cocktail immediately. Enjoy!