lion's share

2 oz Cognac (Pierre Ferrand 1840)
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Lapsang Souchong Tea Syrup (*)
1/4 oz St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
2 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.
(*) I steeped a tea bag in 4 oz of boiling hot water for 5 minutes. Removed tea bag, added 4 oz of sugar, and stirred to dissolve. Let cool.

Two Fridays ago, I opened up the new The Cocktail Hour series' brandy booklet and found a drink from Jacob Grier who works at Metrovino in Portland, Oregon. Having tried Jacob's recipes both at home and at his bar, we were definitely game to make this one for the cocktail hour. And this enthusiasm was augmented by my love of tea cocktails which was most apparently when I hosted Mixology Monday 45: Tea (see the announcement and the round-up posts).
The oil from the lemon twist's brightness was a great contrast over the smoke notes from the tea. A rich lemon sip gave way to Cognac and tea flavors on the swallow. Finally the drink ended with allspice accents and a smoke note that built up over time.