hasta manzana

1 oz Reposado Tequila (Lunazul)
1 oz Calvados (Morin Selection)
1 oz Sweet Vermouth (Vya)
1 barspoon Benedictine (1/8 oz)
1 dash Mole Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

The theme for last Thursday's Drink Night on Mixoloseum was "Double Barrel" where each recipe required two barrel-aged ingredients. Looking over our collection of base spirits, we had barrel aged whiskeys, rums, genevers, tequilas, cachaças, brandies, and apple brandies to choose from (this list does not include our barrel-aged fortified wines, bitters, or liqueurs which I probably could have used as well). The tequila stood out first and I quickly thought of pairing it with Calvados perhaps with the success of Bobby McCoy's Spanish Caravan in mind. To complement the tequila, I remembered Avery Glasser of the Bittermens mentioning how well mole bitters work with agave products; moreover, this concept was strengthened by such drinks as Josh Taylor's Mary Sharon. Lastly, to complement the apple, I immediately considered Benedictine with such recent hits as John Mayer's Plainfield Swing. Considering the ingredients, I decided to round off the recipe with sweet vermouth and use the Vieux Carré as a proportion starting point.
For a name, I went with the Mexican origin of the tequila and made a pun on the Spanish phrase "hasta mañana" (until tomorrow) with the latter word swapped for "manzana," the Spanish word for apple. When I smelled the Hasta Manzana, I picked up on tequila, sweet vermouth, and a hint of chocolate, while Andrea honed in on the sweet vermouth, Calvados, and Benedictine aromas. Flavorwise, an apple sip was chased by tequila and spice on the swallow. Interestingly, the combination of the mole bitters and the Benedictine produced a delightful chocolate mint note.