Clarified Milk Punch

The origins of clarified milk punch are as cloudy as you don’t want your spirit to be. Some attribute the original 1700s recipe to playwright Aphra Behn—who mentioned it in one of her late 1600s plays—whose resume also includes being a playwright and a spy for King Charles the II (rad), but Mary Rockett was the first gal to actually pen the recipe to paper in 1711, thus solidifying her fame as the creator of milk punch. She strained her concoction through a flannel shirt, and the rest is history. This recipe is a version of hers, modified for the modern bartender and kitchen. (Also, sans flannel. Unless that’s your thing then, by all means!) If you’d like, feel free to play with the spices and herbs in your milk punch; I’m keeping it simple and true to Rockett’s 1711 recipe, but stalky herbs—like thyme—would be a great addition here. If you balk at the idea of spending two days chasing this clarified spirit, there are also great bottled options on the market. My favorite is Rockey's, created by Eamon Rockey, the former General Manager of Betony Restaurant in NYC and milk punch aficionado. With notes of green tea, ripe citrus, and florals, I prefer this milk punch mixed with a citrus-forward gin, a tequila, or a Japanese shochu.