comanche club

One of the most curious drinks served at the Le Mixeur Sharky Nine Stories charity event held at the Hawthorne was No. 9 Park's Ted Kilpatrick's Comanche Club. The Comanche Club was the name of a Boy Scout-like troop in J.D. Salinger's "The Laughing Man" story. Ted honed in on Salinger's literary technique of the story within a story and replayed it via a drink within a drink. The Comanche Club was subtitled in the event program as "4 Parts Negroni, 3 Parts Last Word"; guests that night puzzled over the meaning of how a three part Negroni could be four and the four part Last Word could be three? In fact, I was still confused until I asked Ted for the recipe. He explained that it was four volumes of Negroni (2 oz) and 3 volumes of Last Word (1 1/2 oz). In recipe format, it would be:

Comanche Club
• 1 1/24 Gin
• 2/3 oz Sweet Vermouth
• 2/3 oz Campari
• 3/8 oz Green Chartreuse
• 3/8 oz Maraschino Liqueur
• 3/8 oz Lime Juice
Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

The recipe's unattractive appearance but flavorful strengths mirrored the attributes of the Comanche Club's leader who told the story within the story of the Laughing Man character. Moreover, the nontraditional drink concept mirrored the story's abstract structure.