aces & eights

2 oz Reposado Tequila (Cimarron)
1/2 oz Meletti Amaro
1 tsp Galliano Ristretto
1 tsp Vanilla Syrup
1 dash Bittermens Mole Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist.After returning from my bar shift late two Fridays ago, I was in a rush to make a drink and get to bed; therefore, I reached for a recent reliable source of great recipes – namely, Death & Co.'s Welcome Home book. There, I was lured in a with a great tequila and amaro nightcap called Aces & Eights created by Jarred Weigand in 2016. He named his cocktail after the hand allegedly held by Wild Bill Hickok when he was shot dead: the Dead Man's Hand of a pair of black aces and a pair of black eights (the identity of the fifth card has been lost to history not to mention the difficulty in determining the veracity of this lore). Here, the Aces & Eights began with an orange and vegetal aroma with darker notes from the amaro and coffee liqueur. Next, caramel and roast elements on the sip shot forth into tequila, herbal, coffee, chocolate, and vanilla flavors on the swallow.