First Extract Soy Sauce Vodka

One for the martini lovers.

 

Introducing First Extract Soy Sauce Vodka, a new limited release in collaboration with the brilliant Poon’s restaurant.

 

Poon’s is a Chinese institution currently residing in Somerset House. Alongside the restaurant, the team has a collection of incredible condiments, which we fell in love with last year.

 

A particular favourite is their Premium First Extract Soy Sauce. Made from non-GMO, organic soybeans, it’s pressed to order by a family-run business in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, where the fertile soil and temperate climate provide an ideal environment for soybean cultivation. The sauce is fermented in traditional earthenware jars before being pressed just once to extract the purest essence of the soybean. The result is a singularly “beany” flavour. Its deep, complex savoury notes are robust enough for cooking yet fine enough for dipping.

 

So what better thing to do than distil it into an umami-packed vodka for a delicious and unique martini?

 

We blended equal parts soy sauce and grain spirit, infusing for a couple of weeks before distilling at a very low and slow 35 degrees under vacuum to protect its delicate character and gently capture the pure savoury depth of this stunning soy sauce.

 

It’s crisp and umami rich with a surprisingly gentle and subtle saline finish, championing all of the nuanced and rich flavour of the fermented soybean.

 

With each bottle we’re including a small vial of the post-distilled soy sauce ready for our perfect serve: The Soy Martini. The trick is to dispense the vial of soy at the bottom of the glass, under the drink (once poured). You can find a little reel of the drink being made here.

 

So how does it work? Soy sauce is a concentrated aqueous solution - lots of dissolved salt, sugars, amino acids, peptides – it’s denser than the drink, so it sinks. It’s also more viscous than the spirit, so it holds its shape rather than dispersing. And diffusion slows dramatically at cold temperatures, so the soy stays put - saving itself for the final umami-packed sip.

 

The Soy Martini

 

15ml Coastal Dry Vermouth

60ml Vault x Poon’s Soy Sauce Vodka

1 vial post-distilled soy sauce (optional)

 

Combine the vermouth and vodka over plenty of ice in a mixing glass and stir for 60 seconds. Strain into an ice cold cocktail glass. Fill the vial with soy sauce. Gently place it into the bottom of the martini and slowly squeeze the dropper to release the soy sauce, keeping it squeezed until removing the vial from the drink.

 

This is a limited release. Available now direct from our website and in-restaurant at Poon's.