Nine-Day Novena Cocktail Recipe by Aaron Limpe Aw

Recipe by Aaron Limpe Aw, business development manager at Destileria Limtuaco & Co., Inc.

A drink inspired by the Filipino Christmas Simbang Gabi staple, the bibingka: a buttery cake made with glutinous rice and coconut milk and baked in clay pots.

Ingredients:

• 1oz butter-infused Very Old Captain Rum*
• 1oz leche flan syrup**
• .5oz coconut milk
• .5oz rice milk
• salt (to taste)

Glass used: Coupette

Garnish: Banana leaf

Directions:

1. Pour ingredients into a shaker filled with ice.
2. Shake and double strain into a banana leaf wrapped coupette glass.
3. Burn the banana leaf around the glass and serve.

*How to make butter-infused Very Old Captain Rum:

• 1 bottle Very Old Captain Rum
• 1 stick salted butter

1. Melt butter in a saucepan (without browning). Add to rum and let sit for 24 hours.
2. Put in freezer for two hours and fine strain liquid, leaving out the fat solids.

**How to make leche flan syrup:

• 100 g leche flan
• 100 g 1:1 simple syrup

1. Add equal parts by weight of leche flan and simple syrup into a blender.
2. Blend and strain into serving bottle.

Tasting notes: It’s bibingka in a coupette! The aroma and taste conjure memories of Simbang Gabi and lines of roadside bibingka vendors greeting you by the church.