torontino

1 1/2 oz Forty Creek Canadian Whisky
1/2 oz Fernet Branca
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz Dubonnet Rouge

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe.Twist a lemon peel over the top and discard.
Two Thursday ago, I stopped into J.M. Curley's which is across the street from Stoddard's in Downtown Crossing. There, I asked bartender Kevin Mabry for the Torontino. Kevin explained that the drink is a cross between a Toronto and a Torino (or Milano-Torino) or an Americano without the soda water. The Torontino paired bright lemon oil aromas with a dark herbal underpinning. The malty sip contained the Dubonnet's grape notes, and the swallow presented the Canadian whisky followed by Campari and Fernet flavors. Interestingly, the drink was more Campari driven when cold and more Fernet accented when warm; moreover, the Dubonnet seemed to mollify the intensity of these two bitter liqueurs.