Instagram story viewer> @stevens.taste> Posts

Steven Le

@stevens.taste

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

"What time is it?" - One Battle After Another

Had to make a French 75 of course. Swapped the champagne for a Modelo because that's what Sensei would do, and made a thyme simple syrup because Bob kept forgetting the answer to the time question.

Drink while fighting revolutions or celebrating an Oscar Best Picture win.

VIVA LA REVOLUCION (SHOT)
0.75oz @condesagin
0.25oz @theyuzuco lemon yuice
0.25oz thyme syrup
top with Modelo
garnish w/ lemon twist by @stevens.taste

60

1

7 months ago

"In that moment, I'm flying." - F1 Movie 🏁

A Ferrari is a combo of Fernet and Campari. In the movie, the Apex team needed a Plan C to give them an edge. It stood for combat, but I'm swapping for coffee. Also added cardamom, a popular spice in Abu Dhabi where the final race was held.

Drink while watching F1.

APXGP (Shot)
0.5oz @faccia_brutto_spirits Fernet Pianta
0.5oz @faccia_brutto_spirits Apertivo
0.25oz @mrblackspirits Coffee Liqueur
1 dash cardamom bitters
garnish w/ orange peel by @stevens.taste

41

1

7 months ago

For the rat cocktail, I made a manhattan...because rats run this city! This riff is based on cheese tea, a taiwanese boba drink. It's clarified through jasmine milk tea and topped with a salted cheese foam. Because rats also love cheese.

A light bourbon or Japanese whiskey compliments the jasmine milk tea flavor surprisingly well. The only thing I would change is the cheese foam texture. I would use an iSi whipper if you can.

Boba shops were the original third space for my friends and family to hang out, and so this cocktail is a tribute to those days we'd make boba runs.

This wraps up my Chinese Zodiac cocktail series. Thanks for all the support. I had so much fun doing this creative challenge!

CHEESE TEA
2oz akashi japanese whiskey
0.75oz carpano antica sweet vermouth
2 dashes angostura bitters
clarify through 0.75oz jasmine milk tea
top w/ salted cream cheese foam by @stevens.taste

217

17

7 months ago

Nothing beats dim sum on a Sunday morning after a rowdy night. Seafood Cove 2 was the meetup spot for my friends and family after countless celebrations.

For the dog cocktail, I went straight to a hair of the dog style drink. The bloody mary ended up being the perfect format to incorporate dim sum dipping sauce flavors. I love dipping each dish in soy sauce, chili sauce, and chinese mustard. These flavors fit right in as substitutes to the classic ingredients.

The cocktail tastes very similar to a bloody mary, but the chinese mustard reads differently than horseradish giving you that spicy kick that wakes you right up.

HEIR OF THE DOG
2oz @suntoryhakuvodka
4oz tomato juice
1oz lemon juice
3-4 cracks black pepper
2-3 dashes soy sauce
2-3 dashes chili sauce
2-3 dashes chinese mustard
1 frozen ginger cube
garnish w/ chinese greens by @stevens.taste

201

19

7 months ago

I knew pretty quickly I wanted to play off of a Cobra's Fang with 'pho'lernum for Snake 🐍🍜. When thinking of what flavors the drink reminded me of, I thought about the classic combo of drinking fresh passionfruit or kumquat juice with pho. Instead of the classic falernum ingredients, I added an entire packet of pho spices along with lime zest and ginger.

Together with the Jamaican rum and baiju, as well as the passionfruit and citrus juices, this cocktail is easily one of my favorites.

At the pho restaurant that my mom works at, they're known for their stacking bowls. So I chose glassware that reminded me of that.

COBRA'S FANG
1.5oz Worthy Park jamaican rum
0.5oz ming river baiju
0.75oz 'pho'lernum
0.75oz passionfruit syrup
0.5oz kumquat juice
0.5oz lime juice
1-2 dashes angostura bitters
1-2 dashes absinthe
garnish w/ mint sprig, lime, star anise
serve on crushed ice by @stevens.taste

214

28

7 months ago

There's a Japanese French bakery back home in Orange County called Cream Pan. They make the best strawberry croissants. Boxes of these sweet treats are staples at family and friend gatherings.

For goat, I wanted to clarify a cocktail with goat milk and felt like a strawberry croissant cocktail would work nicely. My industry friend Zoe told me that I should try using toasted milk powder which worked really well with the strawberry puree. Cognac and amontillado sherry bring in baking spice and nutty notes that tied it all together.
�This cocktail is sweet, smooth, and reminds me of the strawberry pastries I miss so much.

STRAWBERRY CREAM PAN
1.5oz salignac V.S. cognac
1oz strawberry puree
0.25oz @bodegasbarbadillo amontillado sherry
0.25oz toasted milk powder
0.25oz vanilla syrup
0.75oz lemon juice
clarify through 1oz goat milk
garnish w/ powdered sugar white chocolate
& strawberry half by @stevens.taste

203

27

7 months ago

Thịt Kho is a braised pork dish that my aunts and mom would cook for me. 🐷🍚 It's a common home-cooked meal, especially for Lunar New Year. Now, I cook it for myself often.

Fish sauce, coconut soda, and caramelized sugar all come together to create a sauce that brings me so much comfort. I like mine with lots of cracked pepper and a whole thai chili on the side.

Since caramel is used in many modern old fashions, I thought it would be a great format to play with. To bring in a hint of pork, I fatwashed bourbon in pork fat. I then made a sweet-savory coco caramel syrup how I would when cooking the dish, with a bit more coconut soda and water for consistency. Chocolate and angostura bridged the flavors together.

I didn't feel like the caramel flavor was complex enough, so I decided to filter everything through medium roast beans that had burnt sugar/caramel notes.

THỊT KHO'D FASHION
2oz pork fat-washed @vanbrunt_whiskey bourbon
0.5oz fish sauce coco caramel syrup
1-2 dashes angostura + chocolate bitters
filter through medium roast ground coffee
serve on large clear ice cube
garnish w/ black pepper by @stevens.taste

290

34

8 months ago

I am a sucker for spicy food. 🐮🌶️🍜 My mom says it's probably because of all the thai chilis she had while I was in the womb. Bún Bò Huế is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes. It's a spicy, beefy noodle dish that is often made with oxtail. I personally prefer it over phở, since it has so much more flavor.

I knew from the start that I wanted to play into a negroni since both the dish and drink are bold, have citrusy notes, and are a deep red in color. I infused Song Cai gin with lemongrass and Campari with sate to recreate what goes into the dish. The sate brings some savoriness and tons of heat.

Typically, BBH is paired with a ton of garnishes. I chose Vietnamese Coriander for its peppery scent to allude to the drink.

BUN BÓ HUẾGRONI
1.5oz lemongrass @songcai gin
1oz cocchi
0.75oz sate @campari
2 dashes orange bitters
serve w/ big block of ice
garnish w/ vietnamese coriander by @stevens.taste

974

32

8 months ago

Hopping to the next zodiac animal, the rabbit. I went through bags of White Rabbit candies throughout my childhood, so I had to make a cocktail inspired by them.

If you haven't had them before, they're classic Chinese milk candies that taste like sweet cream and vanilla. When testing out this recipe, I tried a few variations including a gin fizz and even a clarified version. Ultimately, I missed the mouthfeel of the milky candy. So, I settled on a flip-style cocktail that uses Licor 43. I figured, if it works well in a carajillo with coffee, it should work with tea. So, I steeped Haku Vodka in oolong to add a bit of roasted bitterness that the drink needed.

Since oolong added too much color to the cocktail, I'm serving it in a blue ceramic cup that I got from a local artist.

This rich, creamy cocktail is more of a dessert drink, so save it for a sweet treat.

WHITE RABBIT
1.5oz oolong-steeped @suntoryhakuvodka
1oz @licor43global
whole egg
2 dashes angostura bitters
dry shake, then shake with ice
garnish w/ white rabby candy
serve in ceramic cup by @stevens.taste

376

25

8 months ago

In Vietnamese homes, we have an altar for our ancestors where we light incense and give offerings of their favorite foods.

I've always said that my altar dish would be Hainan Chicken. It's simple, tender, and fragrant. I wanted to make a highball that felt the same.

When r&ding this cocktail, I played around with the ingredients typically in the dish: ginger, cucumber, and even chicken bouillon. But it didn't feel right.

Instead, I played around with the aromas that I associate with Hainan Chicken: a gentle, subtle fragrance. It reminded me of the Vitasoy Chrysanthemum tea juice boxes I drank as I ran around Asian Garden Mall.

I infused pandan leaves in Toki, paired it with the chrysanthemum drink, and topped with soda water. I then added some sesame oil to add a warmth that reminds you of the dish (Shout out DCP for the inspo).

HAINAN HIGHBALL
1.5oz pandan-infused @suntorytoki
1.5oz vitasoy chrysanthemum
3oz soda water
~2 dashes sesame oil
garnish w/ cilantro or vietnamese coriander by @stevens.taste

2k

30

8 months ago

Chè Chuối is a classic, comforting Vietnamese dessert made with bananas simmered in coconut cream, pandan leaves, and tapioca pearls. 🐒🍌🥥 It's typically topped with roasted peanuts or sesame seeds, and perfectly "not too sweet".

For this cocktail, I wanted to play more with the toasted sesame notes to give the drink a slightly savory-nutty structure that rounds out the sweetness.

Jamaican rum adds funky notes of ripe fruit and vanilla that pairs nicely with the banana liqueur. Pandan syrup adds a beautiful aroma. And the grapefruit bitters adds lift and complexity.

I'm clarifying this cocktail in coconut milk since I didn't want to get too far in to dessert drink territory. The coconut foam brings back some of texture and creaminess that I felt was missing after clarification. It's then garnished with sesame seeds and a banana chip to resemble this tasty treat I grew up eating.

BANANA SESAME
2oz @worthyparkestate jamaican rum
1oz @giffardusa banane du bresil
0.75oz lime juice
0.5oz pandan syrup
1-2 dashes @feebrothersofficial grapefruit bitters
2 bar spoons sesame paste
clarify w/ coconut milk
garnish w/ coconut foam, sesame seeds, banana chip by @stevens.taste

245

29

8 months ago

Tiger Balm. If you grew up in an asian household, you probably know this ointment well. 🐅🌱Whenever I would get sick, my mom would use it to cạo gió, which is a traditional Vietnamese practice of coining oiled skin to release "bad wind".

I based this drink off of an industry sour, since fernet and green chartreuse played perfectly into the ointment's herbal menthol notes. Chili liqueur and a homemade five spice syrup layer in warmth.

It really does feel like the Tiger Balm I grew up with, in cocktail form. Herbal, menthol-forward, with a subtle heat.

TIGER BALM
1oz @facciabrutto fernet pianta
1oz @facciabrutto centerbe
1oz five spice syrup
1oz lime juice
0.25oz @anchoreyes verde
1-2 dashes angostura bitters
1-2 dashes fee foam bitters
garnish w/ dehydrated lime coin taken in New York, New York by @stevens.taste

241

27

8 months ago