ginger snap

1 1/2 oz Pierre Ferrand Ambre Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1/2 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1/2 oz Rhum Clement Creole Shrubb (Van Der Hum)
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/4 oz Ginger Syrup
1/4 oz Cinnamon Syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Two Sundays previous, I reached for my copy of the Death & Co.: Modern Classic Cocktails book and selected the Ginger Snap by Joaquin Simo at Manhattan's Death & Co. circa 2009. Overall, it came across as a gussied-up Sidecar of sorts akin to Audrey Saunder's Tantris Sidecar given the split base and split sweeteners (albeit without the Tantris' split juice aspect). Once shaken and strained, the Ginger Snap called out with a cinnamon, rum funk, ginger, and orange aroma. Next, lemon and orange notes on the sip developed into brandy, ginger, and rum funk flavors on the swallow with an orange and cinnamon finish.

pullin' me back in

2 oz Ragtime Rye (Old Overholt 86°)
light 1/2 oz Amaro Sfumato
1 tsp Honey Syrup
2 dash Angostura Bitters
2 dash Mole Bitters (Bittermens)

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with both a lemon twist and an orange twist. Two Saturdays ago, I was perusing my list of drinks that I had copied and pasted from online recipe flashcard sets, and the Pullin' Me Back In was an Old Fashioned riff that called out to me as a nightcap to my bar shift. The recipe was created in 2022 by Sean Meade at Dear Irving in Manhattan that was a mafia reference from The Godfather. There, Silvio declared, "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in" and thus ruining his chances at legitimacy. The drink itself was featured in the Secret New York guide book published in 2023. Honey and Sfumato is a combination that worked well in the Margot Tenenbaum and that I utilized in the Shipwrecked, so it seemed like a great duo to support rye and two bitters. In the glass, the Pullin' Me Back In gave forth a lemon, orange, smoky, and herbal bouquet to the nose. Next, roast and honey notes on the sip retrieved rye, bitter-smoky herbal, clove, and chocolate flavors on the swallow.

staycation

1 oz Hamilton 86° Demerara Rum
1 oz Rittenhouse Rye
1 oz Lemon Juice
1 oz Coconut Cream (Coco Lopez)
1/2 oz Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
1/4 oz Passion Fruit Syrup

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a Collins glass (Tiki mug), fill with crushed ice, and garnish with a lemon wheel and mint sprig.Two Fridays ago, I reached for my copy of Chloe Frechette's Easy Tiki book and landed on the Staycation as one that I had not previously made. The recipe was bartender Devin Kennedy's riff at Pouring Ribbons in Manhattan on the 1970s Tradewinds that the split of the rum base and passion fruit modifier with rye and passion fruit, respectively. Once assembled, the Staycation presented a lemon and mint aroma from the garnishes. Next, a creamy lemon sip opened up into rye, woody rum, coconut, and apricot-passion fruit flavors on the swallow.

piña verde

1 1/2 oz Green Chartreuse
1 1/2 oz Pineapple Juice
3/4 oz Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut
1/2 oz Lime Juice

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a double old fashioned glass, and top with crushed ice. I found two garnish directions and chose the former: mint sprig (Punch & Liquor.com) or pineapple frond and lime wheel (Imbibe and Robert Simonson's Modern Classic Cocktails book).

With pineapple juice and cream of coconut in the house, I finally decided to make the Piña Verde created by Erick Castro. I had put it off previously to conserve my strategic Chartreuse resources, but I felt it was time. Erick was quoted in Robert Simonson's Modern Classic Cocktails as saying, "I first started with the move of floating Green Chartreuse over Piña Coladas" in the late 00s. When he was the Beefeater brand ambassador in 2010 and wanted to make an herbaceous gin-based Piña Colada, he found the magic resided in the Chartreuse accent's combination with the coconut and soon switched to Chartreuse as the base spirit. The drink found a home in 2012 when Erick helped to open Polite Provisions in San Diego, and it truly took off when it hit the menu at Boiler Maker that Erick helped to open with Greg Boehm in 2014. According to Punch, the drink also gained momentum when trendsetter Sam Ross at Attaboy started making them after he found the recipe on the Internet in 2016. Sam was intrigued by the combination for he enjoys eschewing standard base spirits for amari, herbal liqueurs, and fortified wines. While Sam was making them as dealer's choice at the menu-less Attaboy, he pushed the drink further by gaining Erick's permission to put it on the menu at the Palazzo in Las Vegas in 2018. Moreover, the rising obsession in all things Tiki also helped the Piña Verde become a modern classic. When I wrote Erick in regards to the two garnish instructions that I found, he replied, "Either one is fine, so I guess both are canon lol". Once prepared as a shaken drink (blended is also a popular option), the Piña Verde welcomed the senses with a mint aroma. Next, a creamy pineapple and lime sip developed into herbaceous and pineapple flavors all mollified by the coconut's creaminess. Overall, the Piña Verde felt like the coconut cousin of the Chartreuse Swizzle.

barrio tropical

1 oz Dark Rum (Zaya)
1/2 oz Jamaican Rum (Smith & Cross)
1 oz Pineapple Juice
3/4 oz Coconut Cream (Coco Lopez)
1/2 oz Passion Fruit Syrup
1/2 oz Lime Juice

Whip shake, pour into a Collins glass (Tiki mug), fill with crushed ice, and garnish with mint, cherry (omit), and freshly grated nutmeg. Two Wednesdays, I was perusing the recipes that I had copied down from online recipe flashcard sets, and I came across the Barrio Tropical from Good Company in St. Louis that would make use of the cream of coconut that I had on hand. The restaurant's Instagram posted about this passion fruit Piña Colada riff in August 2024. Once prepared, the Barrio Tropical approached with a mint and woody spice aroma. Next, a creamy pineapple, passion fruit, and lime sip turned the corner into dark and funky rum, coconut, and passion fruit flavors on the swallow.

double idemnity

1 1/2 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Benedictine
1/2 oz Armagnac (Marie Duffau Napoleon)
1/2 oz Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube.Two Tuesdays prior, I reached for my copy of T. Cole Newton's Cocktail Dive Bar and found the Double Indemnity as his inverted riff on the Vieux Carré perhaps at 12 Mile Limit in New Orleans (the book did not specify). All the ingredients were halved or doubled compared to his Vieux Carré recipe, plus the Cognac and rye were switched to Armagnac and Bourbon. The reverse Manhattan of sorts fronted by Punt e Mes reminded me of some of Maks Pazuniak's drinks like the Cease & Desist across town at Cure, so I was curious to try this one. In the glass, the Double Idemnity gave forth a grape and caramel bouquet to the nose. Next, a rich grape sip slid into grape, brandy, herbal, allspice, and anise flavors on the swallow. The switching from spicier rye to sweeter Bourbon at a reduced amount unfortunately minimized whiskey's presence in the flavor profile.

a scotsman in paradise

2 oz Famouse Grouse Scotch (Famous Grouse Smoky Black)
3/4 oz Giffard Crème de Banane (Tempus Fugit)
1 tsp St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram (Hamilton's)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
3/4 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a double old fashioned, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg.Two Mondays prior, I searched KindredCocktails for cream of coconut recipes when I landed upon the A Scotsman in Paradise by Seattle bartender Scott Diaz circa 2015. One of my friends on Instagram commented how there are not a lot of "Scotch Tiki", and I replied that there were only around a half dozen including the Cocoanut Grove Cooler and the Starboard Light on the blog. Of all the recipes, Backbar's Passport Painkiller that was primarily a Scotch base came closest to this one given the coconut and allspice elements. Once mixed, A Scotsman in Paradise approached with a coconut and woody spice aroma. Next, a creamy, lime, pineapple, and caramel sip transformed into smoky Scotch, coconut, banana, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

garden park swizzle

1 1/2 oz Bombay Dry Gin (Treehouse Hildegard von Bingen)
1/2 oz Suze Gentian Liqueur
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Ginger Syrup
1/4 oz Velvet Falernum
6-8 leaf Mint

Muddle the mint leaves at the bottom of a Pilsner glass (Collins). Add the rest of the ingredients, add crushed ice, and swizzle to mix and chill. Fill with crushed ice, top with dashes of both Angostura and Peychaud's Bitters, and garnish with a mint bouquet.Two Sundays ago, I utilized my Death & Co. Excel sheets for their first and third books to find recipes that call for ginger syrup. In their Welcome Home book was the Garden Park Swizzle by Jon Armstrong in 2014 as a riff on the Hyde Park Swizzle with added bitter elements. The gin, Suze, and spice elements swizzled up reminded me of the Sinnerman Swizzle that went in an allspice direction instead of ginger-falernum. Once swizzled, things began with a mint, clove, and allspice bouquet. Next, a lemon-driven sip opened up into gin, ginger, gentian herbal, and mint flavors on the swallow.

thunder in paradise

1 1/2 oz Caña Brava 7 Year Rum (Privateer Reserve)
1/2 oz Oloroso Sherry (Lustau)
1/2 oz Orgeat
3/4 oz Lime Juice
3/4 oz Cream of Coconut (Coco Lopez)

Build in a Collins glass, fill with crushed ice, swizzle to mix and chill, garnish with dashes of Peychaud's Bitters, and serve with a straw Two Saturdays ago, I returned to the Sherry.Wine database that has a few of my recipes, and I spotted the Thunder in Paradise by Steve Schneider at Employees Only that he had submitted to that site. Steve wrote, "I love the way coconut and Oloroso sherry work together. To me, the nuttiness and dryness bring out the best in coconut." I noted the same thing with Amontillado in the Sherry Colada at the Baldwin Bar and enjoyed in the Sherry Painkiller at No. 9 Park. Liquor.com mentioned the Thunder in Paradise in an article about Panamanian rum back in 2017, and a Yelp menu photo also supports the 2017 time frame. In the glass, the drink proffered a cherry and anise aroma from the Peychaud's Bitters. Next, creamy lime and grape notes opened up into rum, nutty, earthy, and lime flavors on the swallow.

el beso

1 1/4 oz Mezcal (Peloton de la Muerte)
3/8 oz Giffard Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
3/8 oz Amaro Montenegro
3/8 oz Ginger Syrup
3/8 oz Agave Syrup
3/4 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with candied ginger.Two Fridays ago, I returned to the set of online recipe flashcards from Good Company in St. Louis, Missouri, that I uncovered in May, and I selected the El Beso from their Spring 2024 menu. Apricot and ginger have worked well before in the Ninety-Nine Roses and Queen Anne's Revenge, so I was curious to see how this would work in this mezcal drink with Montenegro accents. Once prepared, El Beso gave forth smoke, pineapple, ginger, and orange-apricot aromas to the nose. Next, lime and pineapple notes on the sip blossomed into smoky, vegetal, ginger, and melon-orange flavors on the swallow.

the nameless city

2 oz Planteray OFTD Rum
1 oz Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut
1 oz Pineaple Juice
1 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Maraschino (Luxardo)
1/2 oz Ginger Syrup

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a Tiki mug, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with mint sprigs and freshly grated nutmeg.With the new batch of ginger syrup, I thought about the ginger-Maraschino combination that I learned to appreciate in the New Rider such that I utilized it in my Who Killed Mr. Moonlight?. The Gorillas on Deck that I had at the Highball Lounge was mentioned recently on Reddit so its ginger-coconut combination came to mind. And the third link of the trio – the Maraschino-coconut aspect – was one that I enjoyed in the Haitian Zombie. For a spirit, I opted for the OFTD overproof dark rum, and that made me think of Jason Alexander and his obsession with H.P. Lovecraft such as the Arkham Kula; therefore, I dubbed this one The Nameless City that was Lovecraft's first story in the Cthulhu mythos in 1921. I tried to make this without pineapple, but it was missing something flavor-wise, and I added it in before shaking with ice. Once prepared, The Nameless City uncovered a mint and woody spice bouquet. Next, a creamy lime sip drifted into funky rum, coconut, nutty cherry, and ginger flavors on the swallow.

secret of the lost lagoon

1 1/2 oz Coruba Dark Rum
1/2 oz Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Cold Brew Coffee (1 oz Regular Brew Coffee, cooled)
1/2 oz Ginger Syrup
3/4 oz Vanilla Syrup

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a double old fashioned glass, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with a pineapple frond and orchid (ornamental pea blossoms only).With ginger syrup in hand, I returned to Nicole Schaefer's Portland Cocktails book to look through the Hale Pele recipes. There, I was enamored with the Secret of the Lost Lagoon by Sierra Kirk that won the 2015 TikiTender Competition. The drink had shades of the Mr. Bali Hai and Eye of the Storm, so I was intrigued by what this Jamaican rum, vanilla, and ginger bomb would be like. Once prepared, the Secret of the Lost Lagoon gave forth coffee, pineapple, vanilla, and rum funk aromas. Next, lime, pineapple, and caramel notes on the sip surprised funky rum, coffee, ginger, and vanilla flavors on the swallow.

horse egg

2 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1 oz Pineapple Juice
3/4 oz Ginger Syrup
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
2 dash Peach Bitters (Fee Brothers)

Shake with ice, strain into a rocks glass, and garnish with a piece of candied ginger.Two Tuesdays ago, I made a batch of ginger syrup, so I looked to the Bartender's Choice app for recipe inspiration. There, the Horse Egg by Zachary Gelnaw-Rubin at Lion Lion in 2018 seemed like a refreshing way to break in the new batch (and with this post, I finally added a "simple syrup (ginger)" hashtag!). As for the curious name, the Vaniquotes site defines it as "Horse egg means it has no substance. As, like there is no existence of horse egg," while Urban Dictionary proffers "A person that does or says stupid things. A situation that is really stupid or extremely obvious." In the glass, the Horse Egg greeted the senses with pineapple, ginger, and Cognac aromas. Next, lemon and pineapple notes on the sip opened up into Cognac, pineapple, and ginger flavors on the swallow with a ginger and peach finish.

sailor's guillotine

1 oz La Favorite Rhum Agricole (Rhum JM 100°)
1/4 oz Raff Emperor Norton Absinthe (Obsello)
1/2 oz Velvet Falernum
1/2 oz Green Chartreuse
1 oz Pineapple Juice
3/4 oz Lime Juice

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a Tiki mug, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with mint and star anise.Two Mondays ago, I reached for Trevor Felch's San Francisco Cocktails book that I recalled had a pineapple juice recipe that I had not made, and I sought out the Sailor's Guillotine from the Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar. A menu photo on Reddit had the description of "Absinthe was once cautioned as 'The Guillotine of the Soul'. Drink if you dare. This sea green concoction may cause you to lose your soul, or even your head." With the Chartreuse, falernum, pineapple, and lime, it reminded me of a Chartreuse Swizzle and (ignoring the pineapple aspect) a Nuclear Daiquiri, so I was game to give it a go. In the mug, the Sailor's Guillotine opened up with mint and anise aromas to the nose. Next, lime and pineapple notes on the sip crashed down upon grassy rum, pineapple, herbaceous, clove, and anise flavors on the swallow.

across the pacific

1 oz Appleton Reserve Rum (Appleton Signature)
1/2 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1/2 oz Averna
3/4 oz Lime Juice
3/4 oz Orgeat

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into an old fashioned glass, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with a lime wheel and freshly grated nutmeg.Two Sunday nights ago, I spotted an intriguing Meaghan Dorman recipe in online recipe flashcards from Dear Irving and Raines Law Room in Manhattan called Across the Pacific. I soon tracked the drink down to a 2020 Liquor-dot-com article which varied from the flashcards which had Amaro Abano instead of the article's Averna though. With Averna, orgeat, and citrus, the structure reminded me of the Last Date at the Citizen Public House. In the glass, Across the Pacific gave forth a lime and woody spice bouquet to the nose. Next, a creamy lime and caramel on the sip transversed into funky rum, herbal, and nutty flavors on the swallow.

elixir soriano

2 oz Estesia Rye (Old Overholt 86°)
1/2 oz Amaro Lucano
1/2 oz Cocchi Americano
1 bsp (1/8 oz) Luxardo Maraschino

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Saturdays prior, I was perusing sets of online recipe flashcards when I came across a stack for Leon's in Manhattan. The Elixir Soriano that currently appears on their menu called out to me. Once mixed, it showcased an orange, herbal, and caramel aroma. Next, pear, caramel, and orange notes on the sip welcomed rye, nutty cherry, and bitter orange flavors on the swallow. Overall, this combination came across akin to the Brooklyn and White Collar.

social vampire

1 oz Banhez Mezcal (Peloton de la Muerte)
1 oz Brandy Sainte Louise (Courvoisier VS)
1/2 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Giffard Banane du Bresil (Tempus Fugit)

Stir with ice and strain into an old fasioned glass.Two Fridays ago, I uncovered a set of online recipe flashcards for the Chumley House in Fort Worth, Texas, and I was attracted to the Social Vampire that I was able to find on their March 2025 menu. The Social Vampire has the brandy-mezcal combination accented with Punt e Mes that the 1910 Cocktail does except with banana instead of Maraschino liqueur. Moreover, the banana liqueur-Punt e Mes duo worked excellently in the Banana Manhattan with rum as a base spirit, so I was excited to try it here. In the glass, the Social Vampire sought out the nose with vegetal, fruity, and smoke aromas. Next, caramel and grape notes on the sip drained into Cognac richness, vegetal, bitter herbal, banana, and smoke flavors on the swallow.

bucking the tiger

1 oz Mezcal (Fosforo Ensemble)
1 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1 oz Pineapple Juice
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Passion Fruit Syrup
1/2 oz Cinnamon Syrup

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a Tiki mug, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with mint sprigs and a smoldering cinnamon stick.Two Thursdays ago, I became inspired by the Samson Swizzle, so I mashed up the Luka's Grogg with the Gilda to arrive at the passion fruit-cinnamon combination, and I utilized the spirit duo from the 1910 Cocktail. For a name, I dubbed this one Bucking the Tiger named after slang for playing a risky move in the gambling game Faro that I learned about in Herbert Asbury's The French Quarter book about New Orleans. Here, it donated mint, cinnamon, and smoke aromas to the nose. Next, pineapple, lime, and passion fruit notes on the sip evolved into rich Cognac, smoky vegetal, passion fruit, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

ice-berg

1 oz Reposado Tequila (Cimarron)
2/3 oz Underberg
1 oz Orgeat
3/4 oz Lemon Juice

Blend with 1 cup (8 oz) crushed ice, pour into a cocktail glass or coupe (double old fashioned glass from the freezer), and garnish with the empty bottle of Underberg.For the final Underberg mini-bottle in my three pack, I returned Brad Parson's Amaro book for a recipe called the Ice-Berg. The drink was created by Garret Richard at Prime Meats in Brooklyn where he learned to appreciate Underberg from Damon Boelte. Garret was inspired to create this drink when he observed bartender Thomas Waugh drinking Margaritas with a side shot of Underberg, and he took his mashup in a Tiki direction. I was familiar with tequila and orgeat in the Infante and have whipped up frozen Margaritas before, so this seemed like a delightful direction given my previous Underberg experiences. Moreover, the recipe soon read like a blended Alpine Sour with aged tequila instead of brandy. Once poured out and garnished, the Ice-Berg proffered a licorice, star anise, and clove bouquet to the nose. Next, creamy, caramel, and lemon notes on the sip melted into tequila, vegetal, licorice, anise, minty, and clove flavors on the swallow.

steve mcqueen

2 oz Buffalo Trace Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
1/2 oz Amaro Meletti
1/2 oz Averna
2 dash Fee's Old Fashioned Bitters (Fee's Whiskey Barrel-Aged)

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with a flamed orange twist (unflamed). The 2023 Instagram post lists the Bourbon as Old Forester 100°.Two Mondays ago, I was perusing online recipe flashcard sets when I found one for the Earnest Bar & Hideaway in Nashville that had a curious number called the Steve McQueen. The combination reminded me of the Automatic's Prince Royal but with bitters and without that the Aperol, and of course it reminded me of the Black Manhattan with the Averna split with Meletti. Yelp menu photos have this drink first appearing in 2017, and the bar posted a drink photo and description on their Instagram in 2023. Both provide the subtitle as "the spice rich, booze heavy anti-hero of your father's Manhattan". Once mixed, the Steve McQueen came forth with an orange, caramel, and cinnamon aroma. Next, a caramel-driven sip opened up into Bourbon, caramel, herbal, floral, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

ghost hardware

1 1/2 oz Bluecoat Gin (Treehouse Hildegard von Bingen)
3/4 oz Aperol
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Demerara Syrup
1/4 oz Marie Brizard White Crème de Cacao (Bols)
2 dash Angostura Bitters
2 wheel Cucumber
1 pinch Salt (5 drop 20% Saline)

Shake hard and double strain into a cocktail coupe.Two Sundays ago, I was scrolling through my to-make list, and I decided to make the Ghost Hardware by Colin Shearn at The Franklin Mortgage & Investment Co. in Philadelphia that the Post Prohibition blog had published. The drink utilized a trick that I first experienced in the 3185 that Aperol and cucumber generate a watermelon notes, and it was something that I used for guests and taught to other bartenders at Drink when there was a request for something that tastes like watermelon (or more specifically for a drink with watermelon which we did not regularly have on hand). In the glass, the Ghost Hardware offered up watermelon, pine, and clove aromas. Next, lemon and orange on the sip slid into juniper, watermelon, and chocolate flavors on the swallow.

samson swizzle

1 oz Jamaican Rum like Rum Bar Gold (1/2 oz Monymusk Gold + 1/2 oz Smith & Cross)
1 oz Barbados Rum like Real McCoy 3 Year (Doorly's 12 Year)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/3 oz 2:1 Passion Fruit Syrup (3/8 oz 1:1)
1/3 oz 2:1 Cinnamon Syrup (3/8 oz 1:1)
8 leaf Mint
1 splash Sparkling Water (omit)

Tamp the mint leaves to the bottom of a Zombie glass, add the rest of the ingredients, and fill with crushed ice. Swizzle to mix and chill, top with crushed ice, and garnish with a float of Angostura Bitters (5 dash) and a mint bouquet. I later learned that the Zombie Village uses vanilla-infused Angostura Bitters in their float (not mentioned in the published recipe).After seeing a few references to a delightful sounding Swizzle on Instagram, I hunted down the recipe for the Samson Swizzle on Punch. The drink is Samson Miller's tropical riff on the Queen's Park Swizzle at The Zombie Village in San Francisco that swapped the Demerara rum for Jamaican and Barbados and more importantly exchanged the simple syrup for passion fruit and cinnamon syrups. Overall, it reminded me of the Kelimuto with mint and different rums not to mention in Swizzle form. Once prepared, the Samson Swizzle welcomed the senses with mint and clove aromas. Next, lime and caramel notes on the sip transformed into funky rums, passion fruit, cinnamon, and mint flavors on the swallow.

clavo oxidado

1 1/2 oz Reposado Tequila (Cimarron)
1/2 oz Mezcal (Fosforo Ensamble)
1 bsp Drambuie (1 tsp)
1 bsp Cinnamon Syrup (1 tsp)
2 dash Scrappy's Orange Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with a lemon twist.Two Fridays ago, I returned to the entries on Kindred Cocktails uploaded by bartender Joshua Perez, and I was lured in by the Clavo Oxidado that he created at Featherweight in Brooklyn circa 2016 as a Rusty Nail riff. I was game to try it considering how well Drambuie pairs with tequila such as in the Last Letter and Principe Eduardo and with mezcal in the Farewell & Adieu. Once prepared, the Clavo Oxidado gave forth a lemon, cinnamon, smoky, and vegetal bouquet to the nose. Next, a semi-sweet sip opened up into vegetal, honey, herbal, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

velvet jukebox

1 oz Jura 12 Year Scotch (Cutty Sark Prohibition)
1 oz Amaro Pasubio
1/2 oz Delicious Apple Brandy (Laird's Bonded)
1/2 oz Cocchi Sweet Vermouth (Giacomo Speroni)
2 dash Celery Bitters (Bitter Truth)

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with a lemon twist. Two Thursdays ago, I returned to the online recipe flashcard set for Death & Co. and spotted the Velvet Jukebox that I was able to confirm by a 2023 online menu for the Los Angeles outlet. Since the blueberry amaro Pasubio had worked great with Scotch and apple brandy in the Return of the King and Trainspotter, respectively, I was curious to try this split-base Manhattan riff of sorts. Once prepared, the Velvet Jukebox opened up with lemon and blueberry aromas. Next, grape, dark berry, and apple notes on the sip spun into Scotch, herbal, smoky, and blueberry flavors on the swallow.

alpine sour

1 oz Asbach Uralt German Brandy (Marie Duffau Napoleon Armagnac)
1 oz Orgeat
1 oz Lemon Juice
1 mini-bottle (2/3 oz) Underberg

Shake with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg.For the middle drink of my three pack of Underberg bottles. I turned a recipe in Brad Parsons' Amaro book called the Alpine Sour. Damon Boelte was inspired by the Trinidad Sour and his love of Underberg to create this at Prime Meats in Brooklyn. KindredCocktails has a reference to a circa 2011 article in Saveur with the recipe that helps with the time frame along with Prime Meats opening date in 2009. With the nutmeg garnish, the Alpine Sour ascended to the nose with a woody spice, nutty, and licorice aroma. Next, creamy, lemon, and caramel notes on the sip developed into brandy, earthy-nutty, minty, and licorice flavors on the swallow.

hot charlotte

1 1/2 oz Hendrick's Gin (Treehouse Percy's)
1 oz St. Germain (St. Elder)
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp Diced Cucumber
2-3 dash Tabasco (Sriracha)

Muddle the cucumber pieces, add the rest, shake with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with a cucumber slice.Two Tuesdays ago, I decided to make a drink that the Vinepair podcast had just talked about called the Hot Charlotte. Murray Stenson had created it at the Zig Zag Café in Seattle circa the late 00s in honor of then Hendrick's Gin ambassador Charlotte Voisey. I was able to find a history of the drink on Seattle's The Stranger and a handwritten recipe card on the Seattle Times that Murray gave to a guest. My reason to make it that night was the harvesting of my first garden cucumber earlier in the day. The Stranger described how Murray "got famous on someone else's drink" by way of promoting the Last Word, but the Hot Charlotte was his own invention. Essentially, the drink read like the Easy Street with hot sauce and no soda water, so I knew that it had to be a solid combination. Once assembled the Hot Charlotte opened up with cucumber, floral, and pine aromas. Next, lemon, vegetal, and grapefruit notes on the sip launched into gin, vegetal, and pepper spice flavors on the swallow with a pepper heat and floral finish.

bewitched blossom

2 oz Appleton 8 Year Rum (Appleton Signature)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz 66° Brix Honey Syrup (3/4 oz 1:1)
1/4 oz Ginger Syrup
1/8 - 1/4 tsp Sriracha Hot Sauce (1/4 tsp)
2 Strawberries

Muddle strawberries, add rest of the ingredients, shake with ice, and double strain into a 10 oz goblet glass (6 oz Fizz glass).

Two Mondays ago, I found my list of the drinks to make from the Tropical Standard book by Garret Richard and Ben Schaffer that did not require any acidification or other fancy techniques, and I spotted the Bewitched Blossom that called for strawberries that I currently had on hand. Garret was inspired by Li Po's signature spicy Chinese Mai Tai in San Francisco, and he took the hot sauces aspect of it in the direction of Donn Beach's Queen's Road. To balance off the spice, he mollified things with fruit akin to black currant in the Diablo and raspberry in the Florodora. With the strawberry in place, he named his creation after a line from a poem by Li Po of the Tang dynasty called "A Message to Meng Haoran."

The Bewitched Blossom welcomed the senses with a strawberry and red pepper aroma. Next, lime and honey notes on the sip unfurled into rum, strawberry, pepper heat, and ginger spice flavors on the swallow.

disgruntled mai tai

1 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1 oz Aperol
1 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Orgeat
1/2 oz Curaçao (Pierre Ferrand Dry)

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into an old fashioned glass (Tiki mug), and top with crushed ice. Up end an opened 2/3 oz Underberg bottle and insert into the ice, and garnish with a mint sprig, grated nutmeg, a lime wedge (omit), and a paper umbrella. Punch has all 4 garnishes but the Bartender's Choice app lacks the umbrella and lime wedge (I garnished with Punch's list minus the lime wedge).After seeing a few Disgruntled Mai Tais on Instagram recently, I picked up a three pack of mini Underberg bottles at my local store and hunted out various sources of the recipe. I had previously only tinkered with Underberg in cocktails with the Red Light in Beta Cocktails, but this riff on the Bitter Mai Tai made it seem worth a revisit. While Punch attributed it to Sam Ross at Attaboy in Manhattan (most likely where he was when the article was published), the Bartender's Choice app offered up the creation while Sam was working at Las Vegas' Electric Cocktail Club in 2018. In the Tiki mug, the Disgruntled Mai Tai gave forth a minty and woody spice bouquet to the nose. Next, a creamy lime and orange sip gave way to funky rum, orange, bitter herbal, and almond flavors on the swallow. As the Underberg entered into the equation through the bottom of a straw, the balance became increasingly more caramel, licorice, and bitter herbal.

beretta

1 oz Pierre Ferrand Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1 oz Elijah Craig Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
1/4 oz Wild Turkey 101 Rye (Rittenhouse)
1/4 oz Amaro Lucano
1/8 oz Benedictine
1/8 oz Cynar
1/4 oz Demerara Syrup

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Saturdays ago, I uncovered a set of online recipe flashcards for Starlite in San Diego, and the Beretta as a mixed base spirit and mixed herbal liqueur Monte Carlo or Frisco of sorts called out to me. I was able to spot the drink in Yelp menu photos in both 2023 and 2025. In the glass, the Beretta shot forth with an orange, caramel, and Cognac aroma. Next, caramel notes on the sip landed on whiskey, Cognac, caramel-herbal, and dark orange flavors on the swallow.

queen anne's revenge

1 oz JM Rhum Agricole Blanc (JM 100°)
1 oz Amaro Montenegro
1 oz Lime Juice
3/4 oz Maple Syrup

Shake with ice, strain into a coupe, and garnish with freshly grated cinnamon.Two Fridays ago, I returned to the online recipe flashcards for Dutch Kills in Long Island City, and I selected the Queen Anne's Revenge by Jason Kilgore and Richard Boccato circa 2024. The drink was named after Blackbeard's most famous pirate frigate, and it was different in feel from the Queen Anne's Revenge that I created as a sherry riff on the Blackbeard's Ghost. Moreover, the rhum agricole, maple, and lime reminded me of the Miracles Take Longer but with Montenegro instead of mezcal and lime. Once prepared, the Queen Anne's Revenge proffered up cinnamon, funky rhum, orange, and lime aromas to the nose. Next, lime, maple, and clementine notes on the sip sailed towards funky rhum, orange, and peach flavors on the swallow.