Tuesday, September 15, 2015

boulevardier in the heather

1 1/4 oz Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon
3/4 oz Copper & Kings Aged Brandy
1 oz Campari
3/4 oz Cruz Conde Oloroso Vermouth (*)
1/4 oz Giffard Banane du Bresil

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass with a large ice cube. Garnish with an orange twist.
(*) A sweet vermouth made with oloroso-like wines.
For a second drink at the Mixtape event at the Hawthorne, I asked Cooper & King's Josh Durr for another Sonic Youth-inspired libation, namely the Boulevardier in the Heather. Josh described how a friend of his made a Negroni variation with the Giffard's banana liqueur, and he in turned riffed off of that drink to make this whiskey-brandy libation. Once in the glass, the drink offered orange oil aromas. Grape and malt on the sip were paired with a dryness, and the swallow began with Bourbon and bitter orange flavors and ended with a banana finish.

5 comments:

Paul said...

Do you think Lepanto PX or Soberano 12 year old would work here too ?

frederic said...

I only tasted the unaged brandy neat and not the aged one, but it should.

Paul said...

I have found a source of Cruz Conde Premium Vermouth Artesano and hopefully I will be able to try this drink out by Saturday. I also found Guerra Vermouth Rojo Reserva which has received the gold medal for the world's best vermouth in the International Wine Challenge. It will be interesting to compare it with my other top shelf vermouth Carpono. Maybe I'll have to move it down to second shelf. It has a 30 proof alcohol content while Carpono Antica has 33 proof.

Paul said...

It seems like Brandy in America is more like the European Cognac and less like the Spanish brandies.

frederic said...

Cognac uses only certain grapes. Spanish frequently ages their brandies in Sherry casks which gives a rounded fruitiness and body. There are American brandies like Germain Robin that are French style. The US is just more varied in grape usage and style.