Japanese Folklore and Ingredients Inspired this Whiskey Cocktail at Baltimore’s The Elk Room

The thin slices of Granny Smith apples stacked like stairs atop the Kitsune cocktail at Baltimore’s The Elk Room are more than just a pretty, skewered garnish. “The nine apple slices represent the nine tails that a kitsune, or fox in Japanese, would gain for every hundred years before turning gold at age 1,000 and ascending to heaven,” explains head of mixology Andrew Nichols, who was inspired by Japanese...