Miso & Honey Highball
A long, savoury Japanese whisky highball built on white miso and honey syrup, finished with cold soda for a refreshing umami winter serve.
Ingredients
- 50 ml Japanese whisky
- 20 ml miso-honey syrup — see method
- 120 ml chilled soda water
- 1 lemon peel — to garnish
- 1 tsp white miso paste — for the syrup
- 60 ml runny honey — for the syrup
- 60 ml warm water — for the syrup
Method
- Whisk the white miso, honey and warm water together in a small bowl until completely smooth, then cool. This makes enough syrup for several drinks and keeps in the fridge for a week.
- Fill a tall highball glass to the brim with long ice cubes.
- Add the Japanese whisky and the miso-honey syrup.
- Top slowly with chilled soda water, tilting the glass to keep the bubbles intact.
- Stir once gently from bottom to top, then express a lemon peel over the surface and drop it in.
How to serve
- Glassware
- Highball
- Serve temperature
- Cold
- Garnish
- Lemon peel
The Japanese highball is a national treasure: cold, fizzy, almost ceremonial in its simplicity. The Miso and Honey Highball borrows that template and slips in a quietly seasonal twist. A spoonful of white miso whisked into honey syrup adds rounded umami and a touch of richness, lifting the whisky without ever turning the drink into something heavy or dessert-like.
What you want is a long, refreshing serve that still feels wintry. The cold and the carbonation keep it crisp, while the syrup gives the glass a low, savoury hum underneath the citrus oils from the lemon peel.
Tips
Whisk the syrup until completely smooth so no miso particles cloud the finished drink. Use long, clear ice if you can; the slower it melts, the longer the highball stays bright and bubbly. Pouring the soda gently down the side of the glass keeps more carbonation in the drink, and a single bottom-to-top stir is all the mixing it needs.
Variations
Swap the white miso for a small dab of yuzu kosho if you want a citrus and chilli edge, or use barley shochu in place of the whisky for a softer, more grain-forward serve. A grapefruit peel instead of lemon shifts the highball towards something almost sake-bar in style.
Serving
A tall, narrow highball glass concentrates the aroma and keeps the bubbles lively. Serve as an aperitif with salty snacks such as edamame, rice crackers or a small bowl of marinated nuts; the umami in the drink loves anything savoury and a little crunchy.
Frequently asked questions
Which Japanese whisky works best here?
A blended Japanese whisky such as Suntory Toki or Nikka Days is ideal: clean, lightly floral and built for highballs. Save peated single malts for sipping.
Will the miso make the drink taste salty?
Used in small amounts, white miso reads as gentle umami rather than salt. It deepens the honey and rounds the whisky without making the highball taste savoury in an obvious way.
Can I use a different sweetener?
Honey is the best match because its floral character complements the miso, but a mild maple syrup also works. Avoid strongly flavoured sugars such as dark muscovado.
Related recipes
Earl Grey Gin Fizz
A tea-forward gin highball built on Earl Grey-infused gin, lemon and soda; bright, bergamot-led and easy to make in larger numbers.
Hot Gin and Tonic
A warming twist on the G and T, with gin, tonic syrup and hot water in place of fizz, lifted with lemon, juniper and fragrant rosemary.
Winter Espresso Martini
A wintry take on the espresso martini, with vodka, coffee liqueur and a whisper of cinnamon-vanilla syrup shaken to a silky foam.
More like this