kentucky

1 1/2 oz Eagle Rare Bourbon
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Pineapple Juice
1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist. Recipe is a hybrid of CocktailDB's plus the one I was served.

Last night at the Franklin Southie was bartender Joy Richard's "Whiskey-Infused Birthday Bash," and on the menu were Joy's favorite whiskey drinks: five Bourbon and two rye cocktails. The one I started off with was a Kentucky variation. The Kentucky I was more familiar with was one that Andy McNees made for us at Eastern Standard one night using equal parts Bourbon and pineapple juice. Andy's secret was to use George T. Stagg overproof which worked amazingly well with the house's pineapple juice. Joy's preferred recipe for the Kentucky adds a bit of flavor complexity to the two part one with the addition of lemon juice and Maraschino liqueur.
The drink started out with a Bourbon, lemon oil, and a vague fruity nose. The Maraschino enhanced the drink by adding some bitter notes; however, it did not carry enough sugar to balance the portion of lemon juice added to the mix. The lemon and pineapple fruit flavors mingled on the first part of the sip, while Bourbon heat appeared on the swallow along with a lingering Maraschino taste which built up with each sip. The flavor combination that was surprising was how well the pineapple and Maraschino played together in this drink.