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Silenus

Name: Silenus
Total time: 4 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 45 ml Tsipouro; 40 ml Riesling wine; 10 ml Honey and water syrup; 1 dash Soy sauce

Difford’s Guide

Discerning Drinkers (2)

Measurements in:

Serves:

Keep screen awake

Ingredients
1 ¹⁄₂ fl oz	Tsipouro
1 ¹⁄₃ fl oz	Riesling wine
¹⁄₃ fl oz	Honey syrup (3 parts honey to 1 water by weight)
1 dash	Soy sauce

How to make

Glassware

Serve in a Nick & Nora glass

Prepare

Select and pre-chill a NICK & NORA GLASS.
Prepare garnish of skewered green olive.

Method

STIR all ingredients with ice.
FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.

Garnish

Garnish with skewered olive.

Flavour Profile

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

Health & Nutrition

Nutrition:

One serving of Silenus contains 148 calories

Alcohol content:

1.4 standard drinks
20.08% alc./vol. (40.15° proof)
19.2 grams of pure alcohol

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Riesling wine — Sulphur Dioxide/Sulphites

History

Adapted from a recipe created by Dimitris Kaitalidis at Nectar Distillery in Thessaloniki, Greece, this was one of ten winning recipes in the 2021 O/Purist Quest. Apparently, "Sileni used to be a group of followers of the wine God Dionysus, mythological creatures with ears, tails and horse's hooves. They helped with winemaking and were characterised by drunken joy and ecstasy. Sileni, along with Satyrs and Maenads were Dionysus' entourage during his epic feasts and dances. This drink is pays homage to the God of Wine by using grape distillate O/Purist Tsipouro and wine."

Review

This cocktail combines a distilled grape spirit with wine (or wines – I used 40ml of one Riesling but the original recipe specifies 28ml Dr. Loosen Demi Sec Riesling and 12ml Dr. Loosen Dry Riesling) and then adds honeyed richness and a touch of savoury soy sauce. It's tricky to nail the perfect balance of wine and honey, and even your choice of soy sauce is crucial. However, patience is rewarded, and once nailed, easily replicated.

Gallery

Comments & Discussion

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Matt Premium Member 1y

What an interesting and diverse set of flavors! The honey and tsipouro great interplay with their sweet/nectar notes, and the reisling is also providing some apple and drying this up a bit. The soy sauce is interesting - I added a bit more halfway thru my cocktail to see impact - it seems to accentuate some of the notes of the tsipouro - reminding me of burnt marshmallow (better than it sounds). Give this cocktail a try!