cross-eyed and painless

3/4 oz Tequila (Lunazul Blanco)
3/4 oz Sloe Gin (Atxa Pataxaran)
3/4 oz Dry Curaçao (Pierre Ferrand)
3/4 oz Lillet Rouge (Dubonnet)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe pre-rinsed with Herbsaint, and garnish with a lemon twist.

Two Fridays ago, I reached for Sarah Baird's New Orleans Cocktails book, and there I spotted the Cross-Eyed and Painless. The recipe was crafted at the Ace Hotel in New Orleans and was named after a Talking Heads song. The combination of tequila and sloe gin made me think of Phil Ward's Lipspin, and agave and sloe gin have also worked well together in the Gail Collins, Ticket to Paradise, and a few other drinks.
Once prepared, the Cross-Eyed and Painless met the nose with lemon, tequila, anise, and sloe plum aromas. Next, berry, plum, and cherry notes mingled on the sip, and the swallow shared tequila, orange, coffee, and allspice flavors. I most likely skipped over this recipe before since it reads as though it has a high sugar content; when someone on Instagram asked if it was sweet, I replied, "Surprisingly drinkable although definitely a touch on the sweeter side."