Cedrick Foley takes us through how he makes the Day Breaker, a cocktail inspired by Christmas, late-nights, and the Canadian Mocha.
Fifth & Vermouth is excited to introduce Cedrick Foley of Top Shelf Distillers. Cedrick brings us a cocktail that screams Christmas and screams Canadian tradition all-in-one from his own personal home bar. Cedrick is currently working as the Resident Cocktail Specialist for Top Shelf Distillers in Perth, Ontario which, unfortunately, doesn’t have a bar of its own on-site. We hope you enjoy his story and the heartwarming drink inspired by Christmas and Santa Clause.
Cedrick Foley is the resident cocktail specialist at Top Shelf Distillers in the small town of Perth, Ontario. After spending 10 years in Calgary, he found a new place to call home in a small Ontario town, closer to family. Cedrick is no rookie when it comes to late-night bar shifts in Calgary and the cocktail “day breaker.”
The Day Breaker is a cocktail that embodies the transition of the nighttime into the early mornings. It’s a cocktail for the late-night workers who are up until the break of dawn who aren’t sure if they should be having a strong nightcap or if they should be having a coffee to stay awake on their way home after their bar shift. Cedrick also chuckles at the idea that another character around Christmas time also works similar hours. Can you guess who? 🎅
The Day Breaker by Cedrick Foley
Ingredients:
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- 2 oz Whiskey
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- 5 oz Coffee Liquor
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- 25 oz Cocchi Dopo Teatro
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- 25 oz Rich Demerara Syrup
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- 3 dashes of orange bitters
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- 3 drops of saline water
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- Orange zest oil expression
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- 1 Mocha Ice Cube
The Process:
Making the Mocha Ice Cube:
Mix 2 packets of creamy hot chocolate mix with 2 cups of hot espresso. Stir until this mixture is completely dissolved. Carefully pour the mixture into a large ice mould. Freeze.
How to make Saline Water:
100g water : 20g salt
Combine and stir until salt is dissolved. This can be great for other cocktails as well. We encourage you to store this solution in an eyedropper for easy use!
How to make the chocolate garnish:
Melt small pieces of chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave. Go slowly and do 15 seconds at a time to not boil the chocolate. Once the chocolate is nice and smoothly melted, pour the chocolate into a plastic piping bag with a tip. Drizzle over parchment paper, make sure to overlap the lines quite a bit to prevent a brittle final structure. Dust the chocolate with crushed walnuts. Temper the chocolate in the fridge for 15 minutes (make sure it’s not longer than that or the chocolate will begin to curl. Break off the chocolate as needed.
Making the cocktail:
Combine the whiskey, ice, coffee liquor, Cocchi Dopo Teatro, demerara syrup, orange bitters, and saline water into a mixing glass and stir until fully mixed with your bar spoon. Using a strainer, strain into a Rothko double rocks glass with the mocha ice cube. Express the orange peel over the rim of the glass and into the cocktail. Top with the chocolate garnish. Enjoy your cocktail as the ice melts and the chocolate mocha flavor blends into the rest of the cocktail.
