creole

1 1/2 oz Old Overholt Rye
1 1/2 oz Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth
1/4 oz Benedictine
1/4 oz Punt e Mes (*)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with a lemon twist.
(*) Postnote: this should be Amer Picon as seen in this post. Since most bars lack it, Green Street used Punt e Mes but Amaro Ciociaro, Bigallet China-China, and perhaps other liqueurs would make better substitutes.

Last Wednesday, Andrea and I went down to Green Street in Central Square, Cambridge. Even though we were given the long cocktail list, I ended up choosing the Creole off of their short cocktail list for my first drink. The drink that Emily made me was one of the many Creole cocktail recipes out there. This recipe, often referred to as Creole No. 2, was supposed to use Amer Picon but in its absence, Green Street substituted the part vermouth-part amari Punt e Mes. I enjoyed this drink for it was a rather vermouthy Manhattan with some complex notes from the Benedictine appearing at the end of the swallow. As the drink warmed up, the Punt e Mes' botanicals stood out more in the drink.