montresor & fortunado

1 1/2 oz Mezcal (Fidencio)
3/4 oz Amontillado Sherry (La Garrocha)
3/4 oz Cynar
1/4 oz St. Germain (St. Elder)
2 dash Orange Bitters (Angostura Orange)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with lemon oil from a twist (garnished with twist).

Two Fridays ago, I desired a sherry recipe, so I searched the Kindred Cocktails and found the Montresor & Fortunado. This Edgar Allan Poe-themed drink was created by New York City bartender Rafa Garcia Febles in 2014, and it was named after two of the characters in "The Cask of the Amontillado." The agave spirit, fortified wine, Cynar, and elderflower liqueur structure reminded me of the Libretto, Mexican Turnover, and Nina Brava, so I was definitely intrigued by this libation. Moreover, the concept tied into a bit of Boston history for Poe was inspired by a legend he heard while serving in a fort in Boston Harbor called Fort Independence on Castle Island. It involved a duel over a card game where the other soldiers got the duel's winner drunk and entombed him in a vault in the fort as revenge. The only evidence backing up this legend was that a skeleton in a decaying military uniform was uncovered in 1905 chained to the wall in an abandoned gun emplacement.The Montresor & Fortunado greeted the senses with a lemon, smoke, and vegetal nose. Next, grape, caramel, and grapefruit notes on the sip followed with smoky mezcal, funky herbal, nutty sherry, and floral flavors on the swallow.