wait until spring

3/4 oz Slightly Smoky Scotch (Buchanan 12 Year)
3/4 oz Calvados (Boulard VSOP)
3/4 oz Averna or Cynar (Cynar)
3/4 oz Heavy Cream (Half and Half)
1 Egg Yolk

Shake once without ice and once with ice. Garnish with a few drops of Angostura Bitters (or freshly grated nutmeg).

Two Tuesdays ago, one of my drink recipes made it into Boston Magazine's article "A Dozen Ways to Hibernate Like a Bartender" right in the midst of the first big snow storm of the season. The drink was Wait Until Spring as the second part of my John Fante tribute, with the first being Ask the Dust. It was a variation on egg nog that start with A Drunk in a Midnight Choir, and I ended up splitting the spirit with apple brandy. The original and the variation were made with Averna first but it worked even better for my palate with Cynar here.
The Wait Until Spring began with Angostura spice aromas of cinnamon and clove. The creamy sip had hints of apple and malt, and the swallow displayed smoothed out smoke and earthy herbal flavors. Later into the drink, a spice-laden finish incorporated into the flavor profile as the bitters from the froth entered into the sip. In retrospect, I wish that I had heavy cream at home like I do at work; the Angostura Bitters garnish would have held up better given heavy cream's frothing ability. Therefore, I suggest returning to the A Drunk in a Midnight Choir's classic nutmeg garnish here if heavy cream is not available.