sunset at gowanus

2 oz Santa Teresa 1796 Rum (Diplomatico Riserva Exclusiva)
1/4 oz Laird's Bonded Apple Brandy
1/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Maple Syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe glass.

Two Wednesdays ago, I sought out the Death & Co. Cocktail Book for the night's libation. There, in the Daiquiri section was Alex Day's Sunset at Gowanus that he created in 2008. Gowanus is the area of Brooklyn settled by Dutch farmers in the 1630s, and soon the agricultural center turned industrial and became heavier into manufacturing and shipping. This led to the Gowanus Canal to become polluted with industrial waste (as well as bodies and weapons from Mafia activity). A decade ago, the EPA sought out to clean up the canal which has recently seen a return of wildlife. I, too, have named a drink after an industrial waterway region that became a superfund site -- namely, the Miller's River Milk Punch -- so who am I to cast the first stone?
The combination of rum, lime, and maple reminded me of the Mr. Howell and Kaieteur Swizzle, and the rum, lime, and Yellow Chartreuse led me to consider the Daisy de Santiago. Moreover, the rum with a hint of apple brandy and Yellow Chartreuse was a trio that Death & Co. utilized in their Puerto Rican Racer. Once mixed, the Sunset at Gowanus proffered a bright lime aroma that was countered by dark caramel and accented with a hint of herbal notes. Next, maple's richness balanced by lime's crispness on the sip slid into caramel rum and minty herbal flavors on the swallow with an apple finish.