lacrimosa

2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
3/4 oz Luxardo Bitter (Bianco)
3/4 oz Amaro Ciociaro

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with a flamed orange twist (unflamed). Two Saturdays prior, I decided to make the Lacrimosa by David Slape at Manhattan's P.D.T. in Fall 2008 via The P.D.T. Cocktail Book as a "dark, brooding Negroni variation." I spotted this a few days before on a friend's Instagram and realized that I skipped over the recipe in the book since I lacked Luxardo's Bitter until a year and a half ago. In the glass, the Lacrimosa cried forth fresh orange oil aromas over rye and caramel orange ones. Next, a caramel-driven sip from the Ciociaro opened up into rye, dark orange, and bitter herbal flavors on the swallow.

no further questions

2 oz Rye Whiskey (Rittenhouse)
1/2 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/8 oz Peated Whisky (Laphroaig 10 Year)
2 dash Orange Bitters (Angostura Orange)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Fridays ago, I decided to make a drink created by Tim Kirkland called No Further Questions that he named after his friend Brian Collins' frequent replies to requests of a sip of the drink that he posted on Instagram. Whisky, Punt e Mes, and Ciociaro is a combination that worked well in my Jolly Jane, Rafa Garcia Febles' Stenton, and other recipes, so I was curious to try it here. In the glass, the No Further Questions proffered orange, peat smoke, and grape aromas to the nose. Next, grape and caramel on the sip soon hid behind rye, caramel orange, bitter herbal, and peat smoke flavors on the swallow.

heartbreaker

1 1/2 oz Gin (Tanqueray)
1/2 oz Green Chartreuse
1/2 oz Amaro Braulio
1/2 oz Amaro Montenegro

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with a grapefruit twist. Two Thursdays ago, I fired up The Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and got curious about the Heartbreaker by Jon Nutter at Manhattan's Attaboy circa 2023. The gin, Green Chartreuse, and Montenegro trio reminded me of Sother Teague's Oh My Word, so I figured that it would be a more alpine and less nutty-fruity version here. The duo of Braulio-Montenegro has appeared twice on the blog in the Bar Room Brauler and the Spaghetti Western; however, I have previously only tried one other Green Chartreuse-Braulio drink, the Devil's Whisper, as Braulio is more often paired with the Yellow variety. Once prepared, the Heartbreaker descended with a grapefruit, herbaceous, and pine aroma. Next, a lightly caramel and clementine sip was kicked aside for gin, bitter herbal, pine, orange, and herbaceous flavors on the swallow.

where it all begins

1 1/2 oz Chattanooga High Malt Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
3/4 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Licor 43
1/4 oz Luxardo Amaro Abano
1 dash Regan's Orange Bitters

No instructions were provided, so I stirred with ice, strained into a cocktail coupe, and garnished with a cherry. Two Wednesdays ago, I uncovered an online recipe flashcard set for Nashville's Pinewood Social and selected the Where It All Begins from a 2021 collection, and I was able to confirm the drink's ingredients in a GoogleMaps menu photo. This Manhattan variation launched off with a cherry and dark grape aroma. Next, grape and sweet citrus notes on the sip slipped into Bourbon, bitter, bright orange-lemon, vanilla, and peppery flavors on the swallow. If I were to make this again, I would decrease the Licor 43 amount or even swap the volumes with Amaro Abano, for the balance came across a bit sweet and bright for me; often a quarter ounce of Licor 43 in a stirred drink is plenty such as in the Signals, Calls, & Marches.

maybe later

1 oz Gin (Tanqueray)
1 oz Amaro Braulio
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Simple Syrup
2-3 slice Cucumber

Muddle cucumber in syrup, add rest of ingredients, shake with ice, strain into a coupe, and garnish with a floated cucumber slice. Two Wednesdays ago, I fired up the Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and spotted the Maybe Later by Chloe Martin in 2024 with no mention of where the drink was created. Given the name and structure, it was perhaps a riff on Sam Ross' Too Soon? and very reminscent of the Amaro Montenegro-laden Old News that I made around two weeks prior. In the glass, the Maybe Later showcased a lemon, pine, and cucumber bouquet to the nose. Next, lemon and caramel notes on the sip delayed pine, herbal, cucumber, and minty flavors on the swallow.

thang down flip

1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
3/4 oz Zucca Rabarbaro (Sfumato)
3/4 oz Amargo de Chile (Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur)
1/2 oz Demerara Syrup
1 Whole Egg

Shake one round without ice and one round with ice, strain into a snifter glass (single old fashioned), and garnish with freshly microplaned chocolate. Two Mondays ago, I returned to online recipe flashcards for Chicago's The Violet Hour and happened upon the Thang Down Flip from their Winter 2022 menu; the slightly cooler weather made a whole egg drink not feel out of place. Overall, it reminded me of the Colleen Bawn with the rye, egg, two liqueurs, and grated garnish. Having tasted Amargo de Chile earlier this year, I felt that Ancho Reyes would work well in its place. The drink was probably named after the Missy Elliott's song "Work It" with the lyric "I put my thang down, flip it and reverse it." Once prepared, the Thang Down Flip offered up chocolate, herbal, and roast aromas to the nose. Next, a creamy and caramel sip was chased by rye, chili pepper, smoky herbal, and hint of spice flavors on the swallow.

the caretaker

2 oz Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
1/2 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Maraschino (Maraska)
1/4 oz Amaro Ramazzotti
1 leaf Mint

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe (cocktail glass), and garnish with a mint leaf. Two Sundays prior, I opened up my copy of The Madrusan Cocktail Companion book and landed on the Caretaker by Lisa Kempen at Caretaker in Auckland, New Zealand, circa 2021. Overall, the recipe came across like a Brooklyn riff akin to the Williamsburg with Cocchi Americano and the Brooklyn Bridge with sweet vermouth instead of the dry vermouth here. The stirred with mint Manhattan aspect is actually an old concept such as in the Sirloin from the 1933 edition of Jack's Manual (and rather common with vintage Martini riffs like the Fascinator and Cooperstown). In the glass, the Caretaker offered up assistance with a Bourbon, mint, and cherry aroma. Next, caramel and a slight cherry note on the sip blossomed into Bourbon, root beer, nutty cherry, and minty flavors on the swallow.

gravedigger

3/4 oz Aged Rhum Agricole (Rhum Clement VSOP)
3/4 oz Amaro Nardini
3/4 oz Cointreau
3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth (Alessio)

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Fridays ago, I opened up the Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and spied the Gravedigger by Chris Hughes at Manhattan's Attaboy circa 2025. The equal part stirred drink with vermouth and amaro elements reminded me of the Last Mechanical Art, and the bitter liqueur-vermouth-Cointreau combination made me think of the Lucien Gaudin. Moreover, the only Nardini-rhum agricole drink on the blog is the Adventures Close to Home, so I was curious to try one that was not my creation. Once mixed, the Gravedigger prepared an orange, grassy, and caramel aroma. Next, orange and caramel notes on the sip led into grassy rum, caramel orange, apricot, and herbal flavors on the swallow.

old news

1 oz Gin (Tree House Percy)
1 oz Amaro Montenegro
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Simple Syrup
2-3 slice Cucumber
1 pinch Sea Salt (3 drop 20% Saline)

Muddle cucumber in syrup, add rest of ingredients, shake with ice, double strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with a cucumber slice. Two Wednesdays ago, I returned to the online recipe flashcards for Idlewild in Charlotte, North Carolina, to make a cocktail called the Old News that I had saved until I had cucumber in house. Given the name and structure, it was perhaps a variation on the Too Soon? with Montenegro and cucumber in place of Sam Ross' Cynar and orange slices. The drink itself is mentioned in a 2025 Yelp review as being recommended for folks liking gin and bitter, although the flashcard set was one that I found before that in 2024. Moreover, the Montenegro-cucumber aspect reminds me of the Manhattan riff, the Cobble Hill, but this is in a very different direction given the citrus. Once prepared, the Old News reported a cucumber, pine, and clementine aroma to the nose. Next, lemon and vegetal notes on the sip revealed juniper, orange, and cucumber-herbal flavors on the swallow.

shotgun wedding

1 1/2 oz Mezcal (Fosforo Ensemble)
3/4 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/2 oz Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
1 dash Chocolate Bitters (Bitter Truth)

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with ice (* see text), and garnish with a lemon twist. Two Saturdays prior, I fired up the The Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and opted for the Shotgun Wedding by Chris Hughes at Manhattan's Attaboy in 2022. The combination seemed familiar for it appeared with Scotch and a much lower quotient of apricot liqueur in Held in Contempt also created at Attaboy. In the glass, the Shotgun Wedding prodded the nose with a lemon, apricot, and vegetal aroma. Next, a caramel-driven sip from the Ciociaro blossomed into smoky vegetal and bitter orange-apricot flavors on the swallow with a chocolate finish. As the ice melted, the drink began to fall apart as the flavors subsided, and perhaps this would be better served up in a coupe; this did not happen in the whisky-based Held in Contempt, so perhaps this was due to the lighter-style mezcal that I utilized.

mephisto's mai tai

1 oz Planteray OFTD Overproof Rum (perhaps sub a Demerara 151°)
1/2 oz Laphroaig 10 Year Scotch (or other smoky Scotch)
1/2 oz Amaro Sfumato (or other Rabarbaro like Zucca)
1 oz Lime
1/2 oz Orgeat
1/2 oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao (or other Orange Liqueur)

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a double old fashioned glass or ceramic mug, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with mint sprigs and a spent lime shell. As I was writing up the blog post for the Mai Tai 3000 and realizing that I had never had a Mai Tai riff with smoky Scotch in it before, I became inspired to create a recipe to take the concept a step further. I took the smoky and burly OFTD-Laphroaig-Sfumato combination that worked well in my Brimstone Colada and kept everything else in line with a classic Mai Tai build. For a name, I dubbed the creation after the devil from the Faust tale, Mephistopheles, for a little alliteration and then shortened it to his nickname. Once prepared, the garnishes in Mephisto's Mai Tai offered up mint and lime aromas over the drink's peat smoke and smoky herbal ones. Next, lime, roast, and orange notes on the sip collected the swallow of funky rum, smoky Scotch, bitter herbal, and nutty flavors with a bright lime and smoke finish.

hotel de ville

1 1/2 oz Calvados (Morin Selection)
1/2 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1/2 oz Amaro Nardini

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Mondays ago, I opened up The Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and selected the Hotel De Ville by Zack Gelnaw-Rubin at Manhattan's Lion Lion circa 2019. The name Hotel De Ville translates to "city hall," and the term often refers to the magnificent one in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. I was familiar with the combination of spirit modified by Nardini which has appeared with Bourbon in the Closing Argument (plus chocolate bitters) and with rye in the Defeat by Greater Things (plus orange bitters) and the Mayor's Lament (plus a trio of bitters). Moreover, there was also a somewhat similar recipe spirits-wise with the Dark Horse with a Jamaican rum-Calvados pairing (albeit a non-funky rum) accented by Nardini and orange liqueur. Once prepared, the Hotel De Ville proffered an orange, caramel, apple, and rum funk bouquet. Next, caramel notes on the sip led into apple, funky rum, gentian, licorice, and mint flavors on the swallow.

race to the bottom

1 oz Rye Whiskey (Rittenhouse)
1 oz Applejack (Laird's Bonded)
1/2 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth (Alessio)
1/2 oz Amaro Braulio
1/8 oz Grenadine

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Fridays ago, I got home from work and opened up the Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and selected the Race to the Bottom by Chris Hughes at Manhattan's Attaboy circa 2021-22. Grenadine historically has paired well with amari such as with Fernet in the Jim Rose, Cynar in the Giuseppe's Lady, and Amer Picon in the Jayco, but I have never previously had it paired with Braulio. In the glass, the Race to the Bottom started with an orange, grape, and dark berry aroma. Next, grape and berry notes continued on into the sip where they were chased by rye, apple, pine, herbal, and red berry flavors on the swallow.

sea air on sunday

1 1/2 oz Johnnie Walker Black Scotch (1 1/4 oz Famous Grouse + 1/4 oz Laphroaig 10 Year)
1/2 oz Amaro Montenegro
1/4 oz Domaine de Canton (Barrow's Intense Ginger Liqueur)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/4 oz Demerara Syrup

Shake with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with candied ginger on a pick. Since I had half a lime left over from the night before, I looked through my collection sourced from online recipe flashcards and landed on the Sea Air on Sunday from The Butcher Chef in Toronto via a 2021 set. I was able to find a menu photo on GoogleMaps from around that time period, but most of the photos from that restaurant were of the food not drink. The recipe came across like a Penicillin with Amaro Montenegro and ginger liqueur for the honey and ginger syrups, respectively. Moreover, the concept made sense as a Penicillin riff for sea air has been romanticized historically as a cure-all during the 18th and 19th centuries. Indeed, Jane Austen wrote in Sanditon that sea air and bathing could cure "every disorder of the stomach, the lungs, or the blood." Once prepared, the Sea Air on Sunday misted the nose with a spray of ginger, peat smoke, and caramel orange aromas. Next, lime and a hint of caramel on the sip receded into smoky Scotch, clementine, and ginger flavors on the swallow.

high plains julep

1 oz Rye Whiskey (Rittenhouse)
1/2 oz Amaro Braulio
1/2 oz Amaretto (Luxardo)
6-8 leaf Mint

Muddle mint with the liqueurs in a Julep cup, add the rest of the ingredients, top with ice, and garnish with a mint bouquet. Two Mondays ago, I got home late from a series of industry events and felt like enjoying a Julep to round out the evening. Therefore, I reached for my copy of The Madrusan Cocktail Companion and became intrigued by the High Plains Julep by Travis Hernandez at Half Step in Austin circa 2017. There was something about amaretto juxtaposed with Braulio that I needed to experience to understand, and I also have a lot of Luxardo Amaretto since shortly after buying a bottle, I was tasked with developing a recipe with Luxardo and Hotaling products and was sent another bottle for R&D. Checking back, "shortly" was two years ago (replacing my 15+ year old bottle of Disaronno that I finished a month before), but that does sum up my general use of that liqueur. There are a few instances on the blog of bitter liquids pairing with amaretto with the most extreme being a hefty slug of Angostura Bitters in the Sock Drawer Sexuality, but most are with softer amaro such as two that I created – the Bar Boss with Cynar and the Am-Am Sour with Averna. While the closest thing to amaretto meeting mint was in the garnish to the Caribbean Punch, Braulio has been paired before with mint including two other Juleps – the Ducati and the Thieves in the Night. So I set to work (and got one step closer to not dying with two bottles of amaretto bottles in the house), and the High Plains Julep offered up mint aromas over almond and stone fruit pit ones. Next, caramel on the sip expanded into rye, almond, minty, bitter herbal, and pine flavors on the swallow.

electric circus

1 oz Mezcal (Fosforo Ensemble)
1 oz Pineapple Rum (Planteray Stiggins' Fancy)
1/2 oz Amaro Montenegro
1/2 oz Cynar
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist. After spotting a rye drink on a menu that had Cynar and Montenegro as modifiers, I realized that it was similar to what I enjoyed in the Tio Amargo with Demerara rum. I was inspired to swap the base to a split of mezcal and pineapple rum which I discovered in the Hunter Thompson and utilized a few times before such as in the Cannibal Cove last Fall. For a name, I dubbed this one the Electric Circus after the 1960s New York City nightclub with a variety of performers often associated with Andy Warhol that I read about in the St. Marks Is Dead book. From 1967 to 1971, the Electric Circus incorporated the big top aspect with everything from jugglers, mimes, trapeze artists, and body painting, and added in other performances like psychadelic multi-projector audiovisual shows and bands like The Velvet Underground, The Grateful Dead, and Sly & the Family Stone. One quote about the establishment caught my curiosity with, "Like Woodstock, if you remembered much of what happened at the E.C., you weren't really there." In the glass, the Electric Circus sprang forth with an orange, tropical, and smoke aroma. Next, a caramel-driven sip evolved into rum, pineapple, tangerine, vegetal, smoke, and clove flavors on the swallow.

maiden voyage

1 1/2 oz Mezcal (Convite Essencial)
1/2 oz Fino Sherry (Lustau Manzanilla)
1/2 oz Amaro Montenegro
1/2 oz Yellow Chartreuse

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with a lemon twist. Two Wednesdays ago, I opened up the Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and selected the Maiden Voyage by Brandon Bramhall at Charleston's Last Saint circa 2023. This one was different from the more tropical Maiden Voyage and is instead a bitter herbal stirred number; moreover, it shares more similarity with the Afterword with lime and sparkling wine in place of dry sherry. Once mixed, the Maiden Voyage sailed off to the senses with a lemon, honey, vegetal, and smoke aroma. Next, honey and caramel notes on the sip developed into smoky vegetal, herbal, and tangerine flavors on the swallow.

held in contempt

2 oz Speyside Scotch (Glen Grant 16)
1/2 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/8 oz Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
1 dash Chocolate Bitters (Bittermens)
1 dash Orange Bitters (Angostura Orange)

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with a lemon twist. Two Saturdays ago, I fired up The Bartender's Choice Volume 3 app and latched onto the Held in Contempt by Mikey Reihill at Manhattan's Attaboy in 2023. The recipe seemed like a good follow-up to last night's Scotch-Ciociaro drink, The Man with the X-Ray Eyes, and Scotch and Ciociaro have worked well before in Little Branch's .38 Special, my Jolly Jane, and other recipes besides that Julep. In the glass, the Held in Contempt gave forth a lemon, caramel, and apricot bouquet to the nose. Next, caramel and a hint of orchard fruit notes on the sip slid into Scotch, bitter caramel orange, and apricot flavors on the swallow with a chocolate and orange finish.

the man with the x-ray eyes

1 oz Blended Scotch (Famous Grouse)
1 oz Smoky Scotch (Laphroaig 10 Year)
3/4 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/4 oz Grenadine
2 dash Absinthe (16 drop St. George)
6-8 leaf Mint

Muddle mint leaves in syrup and liqueur in a double old fashioned glass. Add rest of the ingredients, top with crushed ice, and garnish with a bouquet of mint. Two Fridays ago, I was inspired by the previous night's Smoke Julep and the recent Last One Standing to craft my own Julep variation. With the latter's Ciociaro element, I thought about the Picon/Ciociaro-grenadine combination in the Jayco and 8th Arrondissement that dates back to the classic Picon Punch, and I added it in to soften the amaro. For a name, I dubbed this one The Man with the X-Ray Eyes after the Bauhaus song that was a tribute to the 1963 movie of that name. Part of the impetus for the name was the desire not to have back-to-back posts with photos of drinks in Julep cups, so I imagined a see-through vessel instead. Once assembled, The Man with the X-Ray Eyes offered up mint over peat smoke and a touch of fruitiness on the nose. Next, caramel and berry notes on the sip widened into smoky Scotch and bitter orange-berry flavors on the swallow with a mint and anise finish.

last one standing

1 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
3/4 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1/2 oz Jamaican Gold Rum (1/4 oz Smith & Cross + 1/4 oz Appleton 8 Year)
1 tsp Giffard Crème de Peche (Mathilde)
6-8 leaf Mint

Muddle mint leaves in liqueurs. Add rest of ingredients, top with crushed ice, and garnish with a peach slice (omit) and a mint bouquet dusted with confectioner sugar (no sugar). Two Thursdays ago, I reached for my copy of The Madrusan Cocktail Companion and found the Last One Standing by Natasha David at Nitecap in 2014. My research uncovered a defunct Ask A New Yorker article from that year which mentioned that the bar used Pierre Ferrand 1840 Cognac and Hamilton Jamaican Rum as the spirits. The name made me think of the Last Man Standing from Brad Parson's Last Call book, but this one is an embittered Julep instead of a bitter bomb of an evening ender. In the silver cup, the Last One Standing gave forth a mint bouquet to the nose. Next, a caramel-driven sip from the amaro opened up into Cognac, minty, and bitter orange flavors on the swallow with a mint and peach finish.