[battle annie]

1 1/2 oz Angel's Envy Bourbon
1/2 oz Banhez Mezcal
3/4 oz Amaro Montenegro
1/4 oz Cinnamon Syrup
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist.

Two Sundays ago, I traveled to New York City for the Angel's Envy Whiskey Guardian northeast team gathering. After our first round of meetings, a few of us went off to the Park Hyatt Hotel where we found a seat in front of Fabio Steven Gonzalez who the head Whiskey Guardian referred to as "The Professor." There, I requested a stirred drink from Steven using our whiskey, and when I saw him grab the mezcal bottle second, I knew I was in for a treat; the combination of American whiskey and mezcal is one that has worked well in recipes like the Devil's Soul, Sforzando, and Racketeer. Here, Montenegro, cinnamon, and bitters rounded out this drink that Steven did not have a name for. Therefore, I later dubbed this the Battle Annie due to the hotel's proximity to the old gangland Hell's Kitchen neighborhood in Manhattan. Battle Annie was Annie Walsh, a member of the notorious Gopher Gang during the late 19th century who the press described as "the Queen of Hell's Kitchen" and "the most feared brick hurler of her time." The large cube of ice in the drink seemed to align with the brick theme; however, the only throwing was throwing this drink back.
The Battle Annie tossed an orange and citrus-laden aroma in the direction of my nose. Next, a sip full of mandarine and other citrus notes led into whiskey and smoke flavors on the swallow with a cinnamon finish.