plainfield swing

1 1/2 oz Laird's Bonded Apple Brandy
1/2 oz Benedictine
1/2 oz Triple Sec
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1 dash Pimento Dram (1 full eyedropper)

Shake with ice and double strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with freshly grated cinnamon.

Last Friday night, Andrea and I paid a visit to the bar at Craigie on Main. For a drink, I selected the Plainfield Swing off of the menu from bartender Ted Gallagher. After Ted made my drink, bartender John Mayer came by to explain how the drink he created was a tribute to jazz great Bill Evans who grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey.
The Plainfield Swing started with a beautiful combination of cinnamon, Benedictine, and apple notes on the nose. The sip was apple and citrus with hints of Benedictine, and the Benedictine played a much more major role on the swallow along with the allspice notes from the dram. Initially, I thought the Plainfield Swing was a spiced up Apple Sidecar; however, with the Benedictine, I remembered the forgotten classic, the Honeymoon Cocktail, that Ted Haigh paid tribute to in his book. The additional elements of the dram and the cinnamon complement the apple and Benedictine quite well and elevate the Plainfield Swing into something more noteworthy.