vieux carre

1 oz Old Overholt Rye
1 oz Brandy
1 oz Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth
1 barspoon Benedictine
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Stir on ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

For my second drink, I went off of their menu (seven cocktails and seven Champagne cocktails) and asked Russ what he could do rye. From the plethora of rye cocktails in his drink vocabulary, I later asked where he had bartended before. It all made sense once he replied that he was a B-Side alum. For the drink, I was thinking of something New Orleans-like akin to a Cocktail a la Louisiane, so when he mentioned the Vieux Carre, that seemed close enough to my original idea. For this recipe, he stopped his free pouring and picked up a shot glass as a make-shift jigger (I am still surprised at how some places not only do not use but do not have proper jiggers) to get the equal proportions just right. His extra care did pay off from the lemon oils in the nose to the bitters in the swallow. I would have drank this one quicker, but Andrea was going to be a bit later from her hair appointment than expected so I settled into my book and savored this one with an extended leisure.