trilby

1/2 wineglass Scotch Whiskey (1 1/2 oz Buchanan's 12 Year)
1/2 wineglass Sweet Vermouth (1 1/2 oz Alessio)
2-3 dash Parfait d'Amour (1/4 oz Marie Brizard)
2-3 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)
2 dash Absinthe (1 scant bsp Pernod Absinthe)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with a cherry (omit) and lemon oil.

Two Tuesdays ago, I turned to a recipe that I had spotted in Harry John's Bartender's Manual called the Trilby Cocktail. The Trilby later appeared as two variations in the 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book with the first one being a 50-50 sweet vermouth and gin Martini with orange bitters, and I wrote about Max Toste's variation that included a float of crème de violette. The second one in the Savoy is a bizarre equal part number of whisky, sweet vermouth, and parfait d'amour with absinthe and orange bitters utilized as accents; Erik Ellestad declared it, "Wow, this is possibly THE least appealing cocktail I've made so far from the Savoy Cocktail Book. Not only does it taste and smell like Grandma Squeezins', but it is also a most unappealing inky black color, as if you had spilled squid ink into a glass. Who knew Grandma had such a black heart? I can't really think of anything to recommend it." Johnson's earlier recipe has the advantage of turning the drink into a Roy Roy with parfait d'amour, absinthe, and orange bitters accents and subduing the floral candy aspect considerably.
Harry Johnson's Trilby began with lemon, peat smoke, and only a hint of floral notes on the nose. Next, a sweet grape and orange sip transitioned into Scotch, vanilla-floral, and absinthe flavors on the swallow.