frank's cocktail

1 1/2 oz Cognac (Camus VS)
1 1/2 oz White Port (Ramos Pinto)
1 tsp Grenadine or Maraschino (1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino)
3 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

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

In David Wondrich's 2016: A Year in Drinks article on the DailyBeast, he listed a simple but elegant Cognac cocktail he made at home in his list of memorable drinks that he had around the world. The recipe was the Frank's Cocktail crafted by Frank Newman who was tending bar in Paris where he published a cocktail book called the American Bar in French. The unusual ingredient here is the white port that comes across as soft, sweet, and soothing all without masking the main spirit's flavor, and it is best known for being the flavor complement in the Clubland. In Newman's 1900 edition, the drink appeared with a dash of grenadine, but the Maraschino option in his 1904 edition was the one that called out to me two Tuesdays ago.
The Frank's Cocktail greeted the senses with lemon oil, Cognac aromas, and a hint of nutty cherry on the nose. Next, a very smooth and clean white grape flavor filled the sip, and the swallow offered Cognac and nutty Maraschino notes smoothed out by the white port.