[piazza vecchia]

1 oz Chinaco Blanco Tequila
1 oz Nardini Bassano Grappa
1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
1/3 oz Yellow Chartreuse
1 dash Scrappy's Celery Bitters
1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass.

Two weeks ago, I was missing New Orleans since we opted not to go to Tales of the Cocktail this year. So when we were dining at Rendezvous, I asked bartender Scott Holliday to riff off of a classic New Orleans cocktail of his choosing. Moreover, I was motivated to do so since his Vieux Carré variation that I dubbed Central Carré (after Rendevous' Central Square location) was quite good. The direction Scott took was to riff once again off of the Vieux Carré but this time to make it a clear cocktail. In place of the Cognac, he used grappa. Instead of the whiskey, he changed gears and matched his grappa choice with blanco tequila.
The drink's bouquet offered up grappa's funkiness, tequila notes, and hints of chocolate. Next, the sip presented a dry grape paired with a vegetal note. Finally, the swallow contained tequila and grappa flavors along with herbal notes from the Yellow Chartreuse and celery bitters. Overall, I was impressed with Scott's insight of how grappa and tequila would play so well together in the glass. In addition, the dry vermouth and celery bitters pairing was also notable as it was in Drink's Farley Mowat.