king of the hoodlums

3/4 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
3/4 oz Demerara Rum (Hamilton 86°)
3/4 oz Batavia Arrack (von Oosten)
1/2 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/2 oz Crème de Cacao (Bols)
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Wednesdays ago, I was inspired by the Cognac, Guyana rum, and Batavia Arrack split base in the 1930s Darling Cocktail, and I decided to mash it up with the Ciociaro-cacao combination from Little Branch's African Flower. Part of my thinking was due to how well crème de cacao and Batavia Arrack work in drinks like the 18th Century and Mutiny on the Mili Atoll. For a name, I dubbed this one the King of the Hoodlums after a character described in Herbert Asbury's The Barbary Coast book. James Riley who was better known to the San Francisco Police as that nickname came to San Francisco from New York City in 1868 and soon became one of the principal criminal ornaments. In the glass, the King of the Hoodlums showcased an orange, caramel, chocolate, and rum funk aroma. Next, caramel with a hint of orange peel on the sip parried with Cognac, funky and woody rum, chocolate, and orange flavors on the swallow.

my black and bitter heart

1 oz Rye Whiskey (Templeton)
1 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Campari
1/4 oz Coffee Liqueur (Mr. Black)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with a cherry.Two Tuesdays ago, I was scanning through the KindredCocktails database when I spotted the My Black and Bitter Heart created by the Boozenerd's for Valentine's Day in 2014 via their blog. The Punt e Mes, Campari, and coffee liqueur trio reminded me of the Demerara rum-based Coffee Negroni but here with a split base of rye and Cognac akin to the Saratoga and Vieux Carré. Once mixed, the My Black and Bitter Heart conjured up Cognac and herbal aromas. Next, grape and roast notes on the sip entered into rye, Cognac, bitter herbal, roast, coffee, and char flavors on the swallow.

first word

1 oz Laird's Bonded Apple Brandy
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse
3/8 oz Honey Syrup
3/8 oz Velvet Falernum
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass.Two Mondays ago, I turned to the Hawthorne's bar bible and spotted the First Word by bartender Ingrid Schneider. While the name suggested a Last Word riff, this one was veered off a bit. With Yellow Chartreuse and falernum, it was closer to the Eulogy save for the falernum being cut with honey syrup which would complement both the apple brandy and the Yellow Chartreuse here. Moreover, the name and the apple component made me think of the biblical first sin in the Garden of Eden in addition to the Detroit pre-Prohibition classic. In the glass, the First Word opened up with apple, honey, and clove aromas. Next, lemon and honey on the sip fell into apple, herbal, ginger, and clove flavors on the swallow.

shadow moses

3/4 oz Knob Creek Rye (1 oz Rittenhouse)
3/4 oz Hine Cognac (1 oz Courvoisier VS)
1/2 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/4 oz Turbinado Syrup (Demerara)
2 dash Fee's Walnut Bitters (5 dash Strongwater Moutain Elixirs)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Sundays ago, I was perusing online recipe flashcards when I spotted a curious drink called the Shadow Moses that reminded me of the Lineage cocktail called the Red Sea because the bartender's nickname was Moses. This recipe was created at Minibar in San Jose, California, circa 2021, and I was able to find menu and drink photos on both Yelp & GoogleMaps. The structure reminded me of the Liberal variation in Ted Saucier's Bottoms Up but here with a split of rye whiskey and brandy with Demerara syrup instead of Bourbon with maple (and of course, Ciociaro for Picon). In the glass, the Shadow Moses offered up orange and Cognac aromas. Next, caramel and a hint of orange peel on the sip divided the swallow into rye, Cognac, herbal-orange, and walnut flavors.

gogol cocktail

30% Dry Gin (3/4 oz Ford's)
30% Dry Vermouth (3/4 oz Dolin)
20% Cognac (1/2 oz Courvoisier VS)
20% Benedictine (1/2 oz)
2 dash Angostura Bitters (1 dash)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist (Myer lemon).Two Saturdays ago, I ventured back to the 1000 Misture book from 1936 and spied the Gogol Cocktail perhaps named after the Ukrainian author. On paper, it read like a Martini met a B&B and perhaps morphed into a De la Louisiane form. In the glass, the Gogol donated a lemon, caramel, and herbal aroma. Next, the caramel notes continued into the sip where they evolved into Cognac, pine, herbal, clove, and allspice flavors on the swallow. Overall, it came across somewhat close to a Cognac-tinged Poet's Dream or Joan Blondell.

a serious man

25 mL Del Maguey Mezcal Vida (1 oz Peloton de la Muerte)
25 mL Suze (1 oz)
25 mL Lillet Blanc (1 oz Cocchi Americano)
2.5 mL Chartreuse Elixir Vegetal (1/2 tsp)

Stir with ice, strain into a rocks glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Fridays prior, I returned to the Instagram account for Satan's Whiskers in London and selected A Serious Man from a 2023 posting. The drink read like a mezcal White Negroni with a dose of herbaceousness, and it seemed like a good use of our Elixir Vegetal that we only used one other time in the Prodigal Son since we acquired it as a gift at the launch party in November 2023. If the Elixir Vegetal were a larger amount of Green Chartreuse, the drink would read like the pineapple rum-based Pirate Radio, so I was game to see it with mezcal. Once prepared, A Serious Man showboated an orange, vegetal, and smoke aroma. Next, a vaguely fruity sip opened up into mezcal and Suze's vegetalness that melded into herbaceousness and smoke notes on the swallow.

portorico cocktail

50% Gin (1 1/4 oz Beefeater)
30% Blanc Vermouth (3/4 oz Dolin)
10% Jamaican Rum (1/4 oz Wray & Nephew)
10% Crème de Banane (1/4 oz Tempus Fugit)
Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with a thin sice of banana (omit).Two Thursday ago, I opened up my translated copy of the 1936 1000 Misture book and spotted the Portorico Cocktail. The name is the Italian spelling of Puerto Rico which is curious for this tropical gin drink calls for Jamaican rum. Moreover, and the combination reminded me of the rhum agricole-containing Preston-Baker. Once mixed, the Portorico gave forth a banana, pineapple, floral, and pine bouquet to the nose. Next, caramel and white grape notes on the sip flowed into tropical, rum funk, and pine flavors on the swallow.

electric mayhem

1 oz Buffalo Trace Bourbon (Old Grand-Dad Bonded)
3/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse
3/4 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist.Two Wednesdays ago, I decided to make a drink that I uncovered in an online collection of recipe flashcards for Long Island Bar and the Rockwell called the Electric Mayhem. The cocktail was attributed to bartender Tim Miner who currently works at the Long Island Bar, and a Timeout article in 2014 placed it at the Jakewalk which closed back in 2016. Once shaken and strained, the Electric Mayhem gave forth a lemon, orange, and clove bouquet to the nose. Next, lemon, orange, and honey notes on the sip evolved into Bourbon, herbal, and allspice flavors on the swallow. Although the recipe reads like a Bourbon Naked & Famous, the Angostura took things in a different direction.

storm king

1 oz Rye Whiskey (Rittenhouse Bonded)
1 oz Apple Brandy (Laird's Bonded)
3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth (Giacomo Sperone)
1/4 oz Amaro Montenegro
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a Nick & Nora glass, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Tuesdays prior, I got a copy of Sammi Katz and Olivia McGiff's Cocktails in Color book in the mail and was ready to use it that night for a drink. Their Storm King named after the sculpture park in Beacon, New York, was an autumnal Manhattan that quickly caught my eye. Although it had the same name as Damon Boelte's Storm King, it was closer to Sasha Petraske's Fallback with a different ratio of sweet vermouth to Montenegro and here Angostura instead of Peychaud's. Once stirred and strained, the Storm King opened up with orange and apple aromas. Next, the vermouth's grape filled the sip that transitioned into rye, apple, herbal, clementine, and clove flavors on the swallow.