filene

2/3 Rye (1 1/2 oz Sazerac)
1/3 Sweet Vermouth (3/4 oz Alessio)
1 dash Orgeat (1/4 oz)
1 dash Picon Bitters (1/4 oz Amer Picon)

Two Thursdays ago, I began to flip through Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933 in search of my post shift nightcap. There, in the whiskey section was an intriguing Manhattan variation called the Filene that utilized orgeat and Picon as the modifiers (and bitters). Looking back, I did find in that book and make a similar Brooklyn variation using that modifier pairing in the Republic. The book unfortunately gave no indication of what the recipe was named after, but the 19th century Filene's chain was growing during the 1903-1933 time frame including adding the concept of the bargain basement in 1908 with automated discounts as well as building the flagship store in Boston's Downtown Crossing around the corner from present day Yvonne's, Stoddard's, and JM Curley in 1912.
The Filene shared a rye aroma that included a dark note from perhaps the Amer Picon. Next, a creamy grape sip led into a rye, nutty, and bitter swallow. Andrea commented that the combination "looks terrible, but tastes delicious!"