smoking vesper

1 1/2 oz Barrel-Aged Gin (Barr Hill Tom Cat)
1 oz Cocchi Americano
1/2 oz Del Maguey Mezcal Vida (Peloton de la Muerte)

Stir with ice and strain into a cinnamon-smoked cocktail glass.Two Wednesdays ago, I returned to an older set of online recipe flashcards for Backbar in Somerville, and I came across the Smoking Vesper that was served there circa 2012-2013. While the name reminded me of the Smoking Jet Pilot, the combination made me think more of California Gold's Vespertina as a tequila, mezcal, and Cocchi Americano riff on the classic Vesper (that link has my diatribe against that cinematic recipe and a coming to terms with it for a Mixology Monday event). In the glass, the Smoking Vesper greeted the nose with honey, pear, smoke, and burnt cinnamon aromas. Next, grapefruit, pear, and honey notes on the sip led to juniper, vegetal, and smoke flavors on the swallow with a honey and grapefruit finish. Overall, the Barr Hill Old Tom Gin's honey aspect shaped the drink quite a bit, and I wondered what it would have been like with my original impulse of Ransom's aged Old Tom.