kingston cup

1 1/2 oz Pimm's No. 1
1/2 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1 oz Five Spice Ginger Syrup (*)
1/2 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a Collins glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a cucumber wheel and 3 dashes housemade aromatic bitters, and add a straw.
(*) Perhaps 1/2 oz each of ginger syrup and Chinese five spice syrup would work in a pinch.

Two Fridays ago, I suddenly had the day off due to a surprise double shift the day before. After spending part of the day at the ICA museum, I traveled over from Fort Point to the Financial District to visit the Townsman that had just opened. Off of their opening menu, I asked bartender Shannon Higgins for the Kingston Cup, a spiced and Jamaican rum variation of the classic Pimm's Cup. Shannon described how the Cup was bar manager Sean Frederick's creation, but the final recipe went through a half dozen variations as a group effort with the staff. When I inquired about the "Szechuan spice" in the ingredients list, it was described as part of the ginger syrup and included pink peppercorn and star anise. Those spices sound very similar to the components of Chinese Five Spice syrup, and Sean's previous bar, the Citizen Public House, had a few drinks like the 1788 Buck and the Figawi that utilized said spices.
The Kingston Cup began with a cucumber and allspice aroma from the two garnishes. A fruity sip gave way to rum funk blending elegantly into ginger and pepper-laden spice on the swallow.