🫘 Mr Ilyas

Macallan 12, peanut butter, coconut & black truffle — Gymkhana London

2 hr fat-wash + 5 min
Scotch Whisky
Rocks glass
~30%
42 at Gymkhana
Ingredients
  • Peanut-coconut fat-washed Macallan: combine 200ml Macallan 12 + 2 tbsp peanut butter (smooth) + 2 tbsp coconut oil (melted). Mix well. Freeze 3 hours. Remove solidified fat layer. Fine-strain through coffee filter.
  • 50ml fat-washed Macallan
  • Black truffle element: grate 0.5g fresh black truffle over the surface at the end (or use 2–3 drops black truffle oil)
  • 5ml sweet vermouth (Cocchi di Torino)
  • 2 dashes Angostura bitters
  • Ice
  • Black truffle shaving & orange peel to garnish
Method
  1. 1
    Fat-wash — Prepare fat-washed Macallan 3+ hours ahead. The peanut butter and coconut solidify when chilled, allowing them to be removed, leaving their flavour compounds in the whisky.
  2. 2
    Stir — Combine fat-washed Macallan, vermouth, and bitters in a mixing glass with ice. Stir for 25 seconds.
  3. 3
    Strain — Strain over a single large ice cube in a rocks glass.
  4. 4
    Truffle — Grate a small amount of black truffle directly over the drink surface, or add 2 drops truffle oil.
  5. 5
    Garnish — Add a thin truffle shaving if using fresh truffle. Express orange peel over surface.

About This Drink

Mr Ilyas is almost certainly named for Ilyas Khan, one of the legends of British-South Asian culinary history — a figure in the Pakistani-British restaurant tradition who represents the generation that built Indian dining in the UK from scratch. The cocktail in his honour is Gymkhana's most technically demanding: The Macallan 12 fat-washed with peanut butter and coconut (both fat-washing ingredients — the fat molecules strip harsh tannins while leaving the spirit's flavour compounds intact, adding richness and removing sharpness). Black truffle (the Tuber melanosporum from Périgord or Norcia) is one of the most extraordinary aromatic ingredients on earth — its 3-methylbutanol and dimethyl sulphide volatile compounds pair unexpectedly well with Scotch whisky's cereal and fruit notes. This is a drink of extraordinary luxury and precision.

Bartender Tips

Fresh black truffle (available from Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, and specialist truffle importers when in season November–March) elevates this to an extraordinary drink. Out of season, black truffle oil (use a quality brand — Maison Plantin, The Truffle Hunters) provides the aroma. The fat-wash is the technical heart of the drink — thorough straining through coffee filter is essential. Even a tiny amount of peanut fat left in the drink will coat the palate unpleasantly.

Variations

For a more accessible version, skip the fat-wash and add 5ml Frangelico hazelnut liqueur instead — it approximates the nutty richness without the technique.

Details
Served at
42 at Gymkhana, Mayfair London
Spirit
Scotch Whisky
Method
Stirred (fat-washed)
ABV
~30%
Difficulty
Hard
Related
🥃 Scotch Guide The base spirit in this cocktail 🇮🇳All Indian CocktailsBrowse all recipes 🍹MocktailsZero-proof options
Where to drink this
Restaurant
Gymkhana
Address
42 Albemarle St, Mayfair, London W1S 4JH
Style
Modern Indian fine dining
Accolades
1 Michelin Star · featured in World's 50 Best Restaurants

A Michelin-starred Mayfair institution inspired by the colonial-era gymkhana clubs of British India, where maharajas, army officers, and civil servants mixed. Gymkhana is known for exceptional game dishes, a legendary bar programme, and cocktails that draw on the subcontinent's rich botanical heritage — from wild game to monsoon spices.

Visit gymkhanalondon.com