le tour

1 1/2 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
3/4 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Elderflower Liqueur (St. Elder)
1 tsp Green Chartreuse

Stir with ice and strain into a coupe glass.Two Thursdays ago, I opened up Jacob Grier and Brett Adams' Raising the Bar book and spotted the Le Tour as their attempt at a floral Cognac Manhattan. The idea reminded me of the Fleur Carré that I created on the fly at Drink as my attempt at fulfilling a floral De La Louisiane request. Moreover, the elderflower-Chartreuse duo made me think of this as a Cognac and dry vermouth version of the gin and lime juice Gypsy from Bourbon & Branch (that I need to make and write up here soon after mixing lots of them when it was on the menu at Our Fathers gin bar) or of the gin and Lillet Albert Mathieu. Once prepared, the Le Tour propagated a floral aroma along with Cognac's richness to the nose. Next, pear and white grape notes on the sip transition into Cognac, floral, and herbal flavors on the swallow.