don't give up the ship (variant)

Hayman's Old Tom Gin
Orange Curaçao (Curaçao of Curaçao)
Fernet-Branca
1 dash Bittermen's Xocolatl Mole Bitters

Stir with ice and serve in a punch cup. Garnish with an orange twist. See below for a possible proportions.

Last night, Andrea and I headed out to Drink in Fort Point. Ben and Sam were manning the very crowded center bar so we decided to go pay John Gertsen a visit at the 1800's bar he was stationed. John wanted to know what direction I was in the mode for and I replied gin with bitters. John had an idea and only asked "egg or no egg?". I declined since there is something in the smell (or taste?) of most flips and other egg drinks that does not sit well with me. A few exceptions that I have not minded are the Ramos Gin Fizz and the Pisco Sour, although they were drinks at events and not ones I ordered.

The cocktail John made me was a small amount of Fernet and orange Curaçao to flavor the Old Tom Gin. John served it to me in a small, handleless punch cup since he wanted this drink to warm up in my hands and change over time. I did not bother to ask the specific proportions on this cocktail, but when the bill came it read "Don't Give Up the Ship" which is a drink I remember reading about in the Bunny Hugs blog. John's drink was indeed a variant of this without the Dubonnet Rouge:

Don’t Give up the Ship
• 1 1/2 oz gin
• 1/2 oz Dubonnet rouge
• 1/4 oz Fernet Branca
• 1/4 oz orange curaçao

The Dubonnet would have been a nice addition for it melds well with orange flavors and places nicely with gin. However, the simplicity of John's drink where the orange, chocolate, and Fernet flavors swirled through my taste buds was not lacking in any way. Or perhaps, some might suggest it was lacking in the egg (white or whole?) realm from John's original concept. I'll leave that experiment up to our faithful readers to go and figure out.