winter

2/3 glass Jamaica Rum (1 1/2 oz Smith & Cross)
Juice of 1 Lemon or Lime (1 oz Lime Juice)
Sugar to taste (1/2 oz Simple Syrup)
1 tsp Ginger Brandy (Domaine de Canton)
1 tsp Pimento Dram (St. Elizabeth's Allspice Dram)
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Two Saturdays ago, I was flipping through the Jamaican Jollifiers section of The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book and I spotted the Winter. The drink was an interesting variation on a Daiquiri that seemed like it would make a great segue from the previous evening's Nuclear one. For a Jamaican rum, I opted for Smith & Cross for it worked rather well in a similar drink that Hugh Fiore made for me at Eastern Standard.
The Winter's aroma was dominated by the Smith & Cross rum. While the sip contained the lime's flavor and rum's richness, the swallow contained the spice from the allspice dram and Angostura along with the funkiness of the rum. As the drink warmed up, the ginger flavors became more potent on the swallow. Indeed, the Angostura Bitters here helped to take the drink away from a classic Daiquiri similar to their effect in the Hugh's Smith & Cross Punch; moreover, the ginger liqueur and pimento dram probably aided in that as well.