smooth operator

1 1/2 oz Armagnac Marie Duffau (Marie Duffau Napoleon)
3/4 oz Giffard Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
1/2 oz Zucca (Amaro Sfumato)
1/4 oz Benedictine
1/2 oz Wild Turkey 101 Rye (Rittenhouse)
2 dash Spiced Cherry Bitters (King Floyd's Cherry Cacao)
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Fridays ago, I found a set of online recipe flashcards from Cork & Cow in Franklin, Tennessee, which is a bar that I first learned of through their To Rome With Love. Here, I selected the Smooth Operator circa 2021 that was different from the Smooth Operator that I had already tried. While I have had a few cocktails with the Benedictine-apricot duo, I have only had one with rabarbaro-apricot which was the Long Eclipse but with only a minor accent of apricot. Once prepared, this Smooth Operator brought forth an orange, apricot, herbal, and roast bouquet to the nose. Next, apricot notes on the sip opened up into brandy, bitter herbal, char-smoky, and spice flavors on the swallow.