Drink of the Week: Pok Pok Som Drinking Vinegars

If you’re lucky enough to live anywhere near award-winning chef Andy Ricker’s Pok Pok thai restaurant in Portland, Oregon, then you probably already know how good their homemade drinking vinegars are. Tart, tangy and a little sweet, these drinking vinegars are packed with flavor, and though they’re delicious on their own, they’re especially refreshing alongside super-spicy food (like Pok Pok’s legendary chicken wings). And now, even if you don’t live in Portland, you can get a taste with a bottled version of some of Pok Pok’s most popular flavors, including honey, tamarind, apple and pomegranate. Especially handy is the fact that the bottled drinking vinegars are concentrated, which means one bottle gives you 16 chances to mix your favorite flavor in a glass of fizzy water or in cocktails, like the Pattaya Highball below.
$16.95-$18.95/16 oz., pokpoksom.com

Pattaya Highball
2 oz. Gammal Krogstad or other aged aquavit
1 oz. Honey Som drinking vinegar
3 oz. soda water
Ice cubes
Tools: barspoon
Glass: Collins

Combine all ingredients in an ice-filled Collins glass and stir to combine.

Matt Mount, House Spirits, Portland, OR