copp's hill

1 1/2 oz GrandTen Wire Works Gin
3/4 oz St. Germain
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/4 oz Campari

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass (*). Garnish with an orange twist.
(*) Original was strained in a rocks glass over ice. See notes below.

Two Saturdays ago, I spent the evening as a judge for a cocktail competition hosted by the Boston Preservation Society and GrandTen Distilling. The evening entitled "Libations for Preservation" pitted 6 Boston area bartenders in a pair of three-way match ups; the two winner of these crowd-voted rounds would meet head-to-head in a secret ingredient round where myself and the two other judges would pick a winner. Bartender Mike Wyatt of Ward Eight won his heat with this drink, the Copp's Hill, although he lost in the end to Tom Hardy of Canary Square. Mike named his drink after the historic cemetery near his bar, Copp's Hill Burying Ground, that was Boston's second cemetery in 1659. The recipe caught my eye for it reminded me of Ben Sandrof's Cell #34 with its use of gin, Campari, and St. Germain, all in the format of the neo-classic Jasmine. For more information about the night, see the post on the BostonBarHopper's blog; he was the second judge of the night with the third being the GrandTen distiller Spencer McMinn.
The Copp's Hill began with an orange oil and Campari pairing that generated an almost grapefruit aroma. The sip was rather fruity with lemon being the most forward note, and the swallow was driven by the gin and Campari botanicals with a grapefruit-like finish. One minor quibble with the recipe was that the drink was served over ice, and as the ice melted, the sweetness dropped and the Campari's sharp bitterness became more dominant; this is why I adapted the recipe above to be served in a cocktail glass.