Turns out there is something more controversial than pineapple as a pizza topping. Barmini—José Andrés’s avant-garde cocktail bar in Penn Quarter—has taken all the flavors of the divisive pie and transformed them into a drink. Its “Second Slice” is a clarified milk punch that incorporates parmesan, “bread air,” and even ketchup. The whimsical and wacky creation is available on the summer cocktail tasting menu, along with six other drinks, for $115 per person.
“We always wanted to make a cocktail really highlighting the flavors of tomato as well as pineapple. And in brainstorming ideas, we felt a slice of pineapple pizza was the best way to bring those flavors together,” says bartender Jeff Wang, who created the drink.
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Wang starts with baijiu, a Chinese spirit that’s made from sorghum, “but I feel like on the nose and on the palate, it’s pure pineapple.” The spirit is infused with sun-dried tomatoes, then combined with tomato water that’s left over from the kitchen of sister Spanish restaurant Jaleo. The tomato flavor is supercharged with ketchup, because its sweet-salty-tangy-umami flavor is “everything you would want.” And for even more pineapple flavor, Wang adds Dole pineapple juice, since the flavor is closest to what you’d find on a pineapple pizza.
The drink is turned into a milk punch with a lactic acid solution and milk infused with parmesan for a subtle cheese flavor. Wang strains the curdled concoction through a coffee filter to create a clarified liquid with a silky, rich texture. For the “crust,” Wang turns toasted King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls into a tea, which is then transformed into an “air” that tops the cocktail.
Second Slice is actually the second rendition of a pineapple pizza cocktail at Barmini. Another version, which was on the menu three years ago, was finished with a parmesan foam.
Wang says his research involved eating pineapple pizzas from places like Piccoli Piatti and Blaze Pizza. So is he team pineapple?
“A large reason for this cocktail was because we wanted to give the world, clearly, the best version of pizza,” Wang says. “Pineapple should be a pizza topping.”
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind DC’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
