mayor joe

1 1/2 oz Pig's Nose Scotch
1/2 oz Zucca Amaro
1/2 oz Honey Syrup (1:1)
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into a rocks glass, fill with ice, and garnish with a lemon twist.
As part of menu development at La Brasa, I was inspired by the honey-rabarbaro combination that worked so well in the Shipwrecked. Our bar's blended Scotch sadly gets neglected save for except at weddings, and I thus recalled how well rabarbaros like Zucca pair with Scotch such as in the Caustic Negroni. The rest fell into place as I used lemon juice to cut the sweetness, and Angostura and Peychaud's Bitters to donate darker and brighter levels of bitter herbal complexity and spice, respectively. For a name, I dubbed it after Somerville's mayor, Joe Curtatone, although Joe is more of an Averna guy from the times that I have served him elsewhere in town. Once prepared, the final iteration (*) of the Mayor Joe funded the nose with lemon, honey, and smoky aromas. Next, lemon, honey, and malt collaborated on the sip, and the swallow was an elegant presentation of Scotch and dark herbal flavors.

(*) One direction that I took was with cinnamon syrup instead of honey with the Zucca, but I found the original's honey to be more delightful with the Scotch.