The highball is having its moment again, and Forbes is paying attention. In a new feature, writer Claudia Alarcon breaks down why this minimalist, two-ingredient format — a good spirit topped with a sparkling mixer — fits so naturally with where drinking culture is headed: lighter, lower-alcohol, and built around quality rather than volume.

As Luis Zamarreto, mixologist with New York’s Goodnight Group, puts it in the piece, the highball’s resurgence comes down to how approachable and refreshing it is — a format simple enough to let a great spirit speak for itself, without a long list of ingredients getting in the way.

That’s exactly the philosophy behind the Shifuku, the Badger-made highball Forbes highlights from Sugar Monk in Harlem. Built on Iichiko Shochu Saiten and a shiso-mastiha liqueur from Atheras Spirits — a Greek producer using wild-foraged botanicals from the mountains of Ikaria — the drink is finished with Badger Club Soda, which took home U.S. Mixer of the Year at the 2026 New York International Spirits Competition.

Shifuku

• 1 oz. iichiko Shochu Saiten
• 1 oz. Atheras Spirits Shiso-Mastiha Liqueur
• .25 oz. yuzu juice (or lemon)
• 1.5 oz. Badger Club Soda

Add all ingredients except the soda to a shaker, shake well, and strain into a highball glass over fresh ice. Top with Badger Club Soda and garnish with a fresh shiso leaf.

Read the full Forbes article here.