orange noire

1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
3/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse
3/4 oz Eastern Standard Bitter Brew (*)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist. See text for possible recipe alterations.

On Monday night, Andrea and I went to Eastern Standard for dinner after my DJ gig. For my second drink, bartender Kevin Martin had a drink that he wanted me to try and then critique. The cocktail he made me, Orange Noire, was a work in progress, and started out with rye and orange notes on the nose. On the sip, the rye burn and the slight orange flavors stood out in the beginning and were followed by lingering herbal Cynar and Fernet notes on the swallow. While I liked the rye and bitter brew flaovrs, I felt that the yellow Chartreuse got lost in the mix although it did contribute considerably to the sweetness. I recommended cutting the bitter brew down to a half ounce to give the yellow Chartreuse a chance to shine, and Kevin agreed that a 3:2:1 ratio might function better. And since their bitter brew is an Amer Picon replica of sorts, the drink might be better balanced using that liqueur if more were somehow to show up at the Eastern Standard bar. The Orange Noire would have been more satisfying had I not known there was Chartreuse in the recipe and then had difficulty in trying to taste for it; otherwise, it functioned as a rather good after dinner drink.

(*) Bitter Brew: 6 parts Cynar, 2 parts Luxardo Fernet, 1 part Creole Shrub