montgomery smith

2 oz Hine VSOP Cognac (Camus VS)
1/2 oz Benedictine
1/4 oz Fernet Branca

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist.

Two Wednesdays ago, I reached for the PDT Cocktail Book to see if there were any gems that I had overlooked. The one that spoke to me was Nate Dumas' 2007 recipe that came about as a challenge to create a drink called the Montgomery Smith. The combination of herbal liqueurs reminded me of the rye-based Oldfield except that it was heavier on the Fernet Branca than the Benedictine as written (I made them equal in my take on it).
The Montgomery Smith shared a lemon oil aroma over herbal, minty, and menthol notes. Next, a semi-sweet caramel sip led into Cognac, bitter herbal, and chocolate flavors on the swallow with a return of that menthol element on the finish.