port of call

1 oz Angel's Envy Bourbon
1 oz Calvados
3/4 oz Tawny Port
1/4 oz Benedictine
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters
1 dash Fee's Barrel-Aged Aromatic Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with a cinnamon stick.Two Wednesdays ago, I paid a visit to Foundry on Elm where they had assembled a two drink menu for Angel's Envy's Toast the Trees month. Toast the Trees is the brand's initiative to replant oak trees to replace the ones that are harvested to fulfill the new charred oak container needed to age Bourbon; each #ToastTheTrees hashtag on Instagram in the month of September leads to a tree being planted in the Spring. The one that I had that night was the Port of Call created by bartender Jess as a riff on the Vieux Carre. Since Angel's Envy is finished in ruby port casks, the tawny port substitution for the sweet vermouth worked rather elegantly.

second sip & :: virginia distillery courage & conviction whisky ::

2 oz Scotch (Virginia Distillery Co. Courage & Conviction Whisky)
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Cocchi)
1/2 oz Cockburn Tawny Port (Sandeman)
1/4 oz Fernet Branca
2 dash Bittermens Mole Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe.I was recently sent to review a bottle of Courage & Conviction, the new release from Virginia Distillery Co. I became familiar with the brand when I worked their booth at a Taste of Boston event in late 2017, and I was gifted a bottle of their Port Cask-Finished Virginia-Highland Whiskey (Batch 5) as a thank you present from their ambassador. While the port-finished whisky I received was a combination of Scotch single malt blended with their own single malt that they make in Lovingston, Virginia, the Courage & Conviction is a single malt of their own distillate and not a blend with imported ones. The blending was probably crucial back in 2017 for the distillery only started distilling in 2015, so their stock was only a little over two years old at most at that point. This new release was inspired by the guiding principles of their founder, Dr. George G. Moore, to "have the courage of your convictions," and the batch was dedicated to Dr. Jim Swan who consulted with the distillery and guided them with their distillation and cask maturation strategies before passing away in 2017. Here, Courage & Conviction is a Virginia single malt whisky aged in used Bourbon, sherry, and cuvee casks.

Virginia Distillery Co. Port Cask-Finished Virginia-Highland Whisky (Batch 5, 2017)
Nose: A dry peat without much smoke, cherry, chocolate, and toasted wood.
Taste: Plum, hint medicinal, caramel, chocolate.
Finish: Cherry, chocolate, cinnamon.

Virginia Distillery Co. Courage & Conviction (Batch: Dr. Jim Swan, 2020)
Nose: Apricot, nutty, toasty, freshly shaved oak.
Taste: Orange, nectarine, cedar.
Finish: Chocolate, medicinal, red fruit.

Overall, the Courage & Conviction was a much more refined spirit than the one that they produced three years prior. It came across as softer and more finished of a spirit showing that the distillery is indeed heading in the correct path as their own products are maturing on site.

For a drink to mix this whisky, I selected from my notes a recipe on the Bittermens website. A few years ago, Avery and Janet Glasser challenged Brian Miller at Death & Co. to make a Scotch, Fernet, and bitters cocktail, and the Second Sip was what he came up with. The combination reminded me of a Chancellor with the whisky, port, and vermouth elements, but here, there was the addition of Fernet Branca to made for a bit more aggressive of a tipple (which I also attempted to do in the Preceptor using other amari). In the glass, the Second Sip donated a grape, malt, and menthol aroma. Next, grape and caramel swirled on the sip, and the swallow showcased whisky, dried fruit, and briny flavors with a menthol finish.

the manila hoop punch

2 pony Port Wine (2 oz Sandeman Founders)
1 pony Cognac (1 oz Courvoisier VS)
1/2 pony Curaçao (1/2 oz Pierre Ferrand)
1/2 pony Lemon or Lime Juice (1/2 oz Lemon)

Build in a goblet and fill with crushed ice; I garnished with a mint sprig and freshly grated nutmeg.
Two Thursdays ago, I was inspired to make the Manila Hoop Punch from Charles H. Baker's 1939 The Gentleman's Companion that was the inspiration for the Port World Cup Cocktail that I wrote about two days prior. The original called for brandy and curaçao instead of the riff's rum and Becherovka spiced liqueur, and Baker first had this in 1931 and attributed it to "Monk" Antrim's No. 1 bartender. Once built, the Manila Hoop Punch welcomed the nose with a woody spice and mint bouquet. Next, grape, lemon, and hints of orange on the sip jumped into Cognac, port, and orange flavors on the swallow. Overall, it first reminded me of a port-driven Sidecar until I remembered that I had enjoyed that flavor combination before in the St. Charles Ave Punch from Stanley Arthur Clisby's 1937 Famous New Orleans' Drinks & How to Mix'Em.

the port world cup cocktail

1 1/2 oz Tawny Port (Sandeman)
1/2 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1/4 oz Becherovka
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Simple Syrup

Whip shake, pour into a rocks glass, and fill with crushed ice. Garnish with an orange twist and mint sprig.

Two Tuesdays ago, Kara Newman posted that an article of hers had just been published in the Wine Enthusiast. It was about a drink called the Port World Cup Cocktail that was created at Cure in New Orleans as Matt Young's riff on the Manila Hoop Punch in Charles H. Baker's 1939 The Gentleman's Companion (which I made two days later). Matt was inspired by Manila being the "Global City" by utilizing spirits from around the world; his original was a split of rum and aged cachaça which was simplified for publication.
The Port World Cup greeted the nose with a mint, orange, and rum funk aroma. Next, lime and grape notes on the sip traveled to port wine, funky Jamaican rum, clove, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

song to the siren

1 3/4 oz Jamaican Rum (1 oz Appleton Signature + 3/4 oz Stolen Overproof)
1/4 oz Cruzan Black Strap Rum
1 oz Port (Sandeman Tawny)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Kronan Swedish Punsch
1/2 oz Cinnamon Syrup
2 dash Bitters (Angostura)

Shake with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg.
Two Mondays ago, I spotted a 2014 creation by New York City bartender Rafa Garcia Febles on Kindred Cocktails called the Song to the Siren; Rafa later mentioned to me that this is a tribute to the Tim Buckley song. The combination of Jamaican rum, port, and Swedish punsch sounded like it would make for a delightful tipple with a nautical feel, and it shared some similarity with his Papa Hogo that I enjoyed a few years ago. Once prepared, the Song to the Siren welcomed the senses with caramel, funk, and woody spice aromas. Next, lime mingling with grape on the sip called out for dark and funky rum, tea, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

preceptor

1 1/2 oz Scotch (Cutty Sark Prohibition)
1/2 oz Ruby or Tawny Port (Sandeman Tawny)
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz Zucca or Sfumato (Sfumato)
2 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist. Perhaps increasing the port to 3/4 oz and decreasing each of the amaro to 3/8 oz might balance the drink for a wider range of palates. Or perhaps 2 oz Scotch, 1/2 oz port, and 1/4 oz each amaro (with the bitters).

After work two Fridays ago, I had been thinking about how well Campari and rabarbaro (such as Zucca and Sfumato) can join forces to make a complex bitter note like in the Cosa Nostra. Since Scotch and Sfumato paired so well in drinks like the Caustic Negroni, I began to think about classic whisky cocktails and ended up on the port-containing Chancellor from the 1956 Esquire Drink book. With Phil Ward's Baltasar and Blimunda (a Negroni of sorts with port) in mind, I altered the Chancellor to include these two amari.
For a name, I kept with the academic theme that runs in Chancellor-like drinks like the Administrator, Guardian, and Professor and dubbed this one the Preceptor. The drink itself began with a lemon oil aroma over dark herbal smokiness and grape notes. Next, the port's rich grape filled the sip, and the swallow answered with a smoky Scotch flavor and bitter rhubarb root quickly merging into bitter orange on the swallow with a peat smoke finish. While I found the balance to hit the spot for my mood that night, perhaps increasing the port and/or decreasing each of the amaro might make the drink more accessible (see note in the instructions).

baron of brooklyn

1 1/2 oz Cachaça (Seleta Gold)
1 1/2 oz Tawny Port (Sandeman)
1/2 oz Crème de Banana (Giffard)
1/2 oz Suze Gentian Liqueur
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash Mole Bitters (Bittermens)

Stir with ice, strain into a snifter (double old fashioned glass) with a large ice cube, and garnish with a lemon horse's neck twist.
One of the recipes in Doni Belau's Paris Cocktails that caught my eye was not from Paris or even Europe, but it was from America from the French-inspired Maison Premiere in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Despite the disparate ingredients of cachaça, port, gentian liqueur, and banana liqueur in the Baron of Brooklyn, the end result was rather elegant. In the glass, the drink let go a lemon, dark grape, and banana bouquet to the nose. Next, a sweet grape sip transitioned into funky cachaça, fruity banana, and complex gentian flavors with a cinnamon and allspice finish.

schooner

1 oz Lime Juice
1 oz Lemon Juice
1 oz Simple Syrup
1 1/2 oz Papaya Nectar (muddled fruit, strained)
2 oz Port (Sandeman Tawny)
1/2 oz Light Puerto Rican Rum (Caliche)
1/2 oz 151 Proof Caribbean Rum (Don Q 151)

Shake with crushed ice, pour into a double old fashioned glass, and top with crushed ice.
In continuing on with my papaya drinks to best utilize my fruit that I have been muddling, I turned to one of the recipes two Tuesdays ago to one of the recipes that I had bookmarked in Beachbum Berry's Remixed. That drink was the Schooner from Seattle's Four Winds, and Berry provided surprisingly little information about its history such as its decade of origin. If I had seen this recipe in print, the use of port would have made me think that it was a Martin Cate creation from Smuggler's Cove such as with his Dead Reckoning (although his use is a bit more as a supportive ingredient than a main one). Once prepared, the Schooner shared a peppery floral aroma from the nasturtium garnish that paired elegantly with the papaya notes stemming from the drink itself. Next, grape, lemon, and lime mingled on the sip with a tropical note deriving from the papaya, and the swallow began with rum and port's grape and ended with a delightful papaya finish.

princeton

1 1/2 pony Tom Gin (1 1/2 oz Hayman's Old Tom)
3 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)
1/2 pony Port (1/2 oz Sandeman Tawny)

Stir the gin and bitters with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Next, carefully add the port and let it settle to the bottom of the glass.
After making the Princeton Cocktail from Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933, I decided to make the older and relatively better known Princeton from George J. Kappeler's 1895 Modern America Drinks. Kappeler's recipe is a layered cocktail of a bone dry Old Tom Gin Martini floating on top of a port wine base. After carefully layering the drink, the nose offered a piny juniper aroma in an almost grapefruit-like way. Next, a semi-sweet sip transitioned into pine on the swallow, and as the port began to enter into the equation, the drink gained grape richness on both the sip and swallow. Moreover, towards the end, the balance shifted more to juniper-flavored port.

improved dunlop

2 oz Croft Reserve Tawny Port
1 oz Clement 6 Year Rhum Agricole
1/4 bsp Cane Syrup
1 dash Mole Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a double old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with a grapefruit twist.

Two Mondays ago, I attended a seminar on port wine at the Hawthorne given by Chris Forbes, a Fladgate Export Manager, and Andy Seymour of Liquid Productions. Throughout the seminar, we tasted various ports as well as a handful of port cocktails crafted by Liquid Production's Lulu Martinez. One of my favorites of the collection was a simple modification of the Dunlop that appeared in the 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book. The Savoy's Dunlop was a 2:1 rum to sherry cocktail embittered by Angostura akin to Trader Vic's Arawak. Here, the fortified wine was swapped to tawny port, the rum to wine proportions were inversed, and the bitters were changed to chocolate molé. Andy started his talk by describing how underdog spirits can be introduced to people using cocktails as a bridge, and this strategy worked wonders for gin, mezcal, and sherry. So here, a sherry drink was elegantly modified into a port one.
The Improved Dunlop greeted the senses with bright grapefruit oils that countered darker notes from the port on the nose. Next, the sip showcased a crisp grape note, and the swallow had grassy rhum meeting earthy grape and dried fruit notes with a chocolate and acid-rich finish.

st. charles punch v2.0

2 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Orgeat
1/4 oz Curaçao (Copper & Kings Distillaré)

Shake with ice, strain into a Collins glass filled with crushed ice, and float 1/4 oz port (Sandeman Tawny). Note: my port float cascaded down with only a small amount remaining at the top.

Two Wednesdays ago, I reached for Sarah Baird's New Orleans Cocktails, and I came across a modern remake of the St. Charles Punch. The original appeared in Stanley Arthur Clisby's 1937 Famous New Orleans' Drinks & How to Mix'Em as a split spirits port and brandy Sidecar of sorts created at the St. Charles Hotel. This modern remake was crafted by Steven Yamada while at the Ace Hotel circa 2016. I first met Steven on opposite sides of the bar at Beachbum Berry's Latitude 29 in 2015, and then he became my cabin counselor a few months later at Camp Runamok where he crafted the Cynar Colada as our house libation. His riff here decreased the port to a short float (although given the density of port, it beautifully cascaded down through the crushed ice) and added orgeat to add nuttiness and warmth and an almost tropical feel; moreover, it made the punch below the float feel like a Sidecar crossed with a Japanese Cocktail.
In the glass, the St. Charles Punch v2.0 gave forth a rather Cognac-driven aroma with hints of orange and port on the nose. Next, a creamy lemon and orange sip stepped aside to a Cognac, nutty, and grape swallow with an apple-like finish.

hudson

1/2 Brandy (1 1/2 oz Courvoisier VS)
1/4 Bacardi (3/4 oz Privateer Tres Aromatic Overproof White Rum)
2 dash Port (1/2 oz Sandeman Tawny + 1/4 oz Simple Syrup)
1 dash Lemon Juice (1/2 oz)

Shake with ice and strain into a glass; I added a lemon twist and freshly grated nutmeg as garnish.
Two Saturdays ago, I turned to Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933 to uncover the evening's libation. There, I spotted the Hudson that had elements of sangaree and punch, so I decided to give it a go. Once prepared, the Hudson offered up lemon, grape, and nutmeg aromas to the nose. Next, lemon and grape on the sip gave way to Cognac and funky rum on the swallow with a grape finish. Overall, the combination reminded me of the Chicago as well as the St. Charles Avenue Punch.

second sip

2 oz Compass Box Asyla Scotch (1 3/4 oz Famous Grouse + 1/4 oz Laphroaig 10 Year)
1/2 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth (Cocchi)
1/2 oz Cockburn 20 Year Tawny Port (Sandeman Tawny)
1/4 oz Fernet Branca
2 dash Bittermens Mole Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe.
After Thanksgiving dinner, I was in the mood for a digestif cocktail, and I recalled that there was a Fernet Branca recipe on the Bittermens webpage. That drink was the Second Sip which reminded me a bit of an embittered Chancellor or a less floral Skyfall. The provided history was that Avery and Janet Glasser of the Bittermens challenged Brian Miller at Death & Co. to come up with a cocktail with Scotch, their bitters, and Fernet Branca, and this was the result. Once prepared, the Second Sip gave forth a peat smoke nose with hints of Fernet's menthol. Next, a rich grape sip from the vermouth and port led into a smoky whisky and bitter herbal swallow with a chocolate-menthol finish.

mexican-style mint julep

1/2 Felipe II Brandy (1 1/2 oz Courvoisier VS)
1/2 Sandeman Port (1 1/2 oz Sandeman Tawny)
1 tsp Maraschino (Luxardo)
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 Lemon Peel
Peppermint (8 leaf)

Shake with ice in a double old fashioned glass and serve with 2 cherries without straining (Muddle the lemon peel with the sugar and then gently muddle the mint. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir, and remove the mint and peel. Fill with crushed ice and garnish with mint sprigs.).
Two Wednesdays ago, I was looking through the EUVS library and rediscovered the 1939 Floridita Cocktails book by Constante Ribalaigua Vert. What caught my eye in this Cuban tome were the two Mint Juleps inside with the more recognizable recipe being referred to as the "Virginia-style" one. The other was the "Mexican-style" Julep that had a mix of brandy and port with Maraschino, bitters, and citrus oil accents. The presence of a fortified wine in a Julep did not surprise me for I have had the Dubonnet Mint Julep as well as the sherry-based Platonic Julep before, but I could not remember a single time that I had mint muddled into a port drink. Once prepared, the Julep offered a mint aroma that gave way to a rich grape sip. Next, the swallow gave forth brandy, port, and a hint of nutty notes with a mint and clove finish.

glasgow

1/2 Scotch (1 1/2 oz Famous Grouse + 1/4 oz Laphroaig 10 Year)
3 dash Port (1/2 oz Sandeman Tawny)
3 dash Dry Vermouth (1/2 oz La Quintinye)
1 dash Picon Bitters (1/4 oz Torani Amer)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

For a post-work nightcap two Saturdays ago, I reached for Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933 for inspiration. There in the Scotch and Irish Whisk(e)y section, I spotted the Glasgow that was different than the Glasgow that David Wondrich wrote about with a Crispin Glover allusion. Here, the recipe was closer to a Chancellor with Amer Picon in place of the nonpotable bitters. Scotch and Amer Picon frequently are paired together in the Pioneers book with great success such as in the Sunshine, so I was game to give this recipe a try.
The Glasgow presented peat over the port's grape aroma. Next, malt joined a semi-dry grape flavor on the sip, and the swallow gave forth smoky Scotch, apricot, and dark orange notes.

professor

2 oz Rhum Clement VSOP (Depaz Rhum Agricole)
3/4 oz Dow's Tawny Port (Sandeman)
1/2 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth (Alessio)
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with an orange twist.
After my bar shift two Thursdays ago, the Skyfall's Chancellor-like structure the night before reminded me that I never made the Professor from the P.D.T. Cocktail Book. The Professor was Michael Madrusan's 2007 rhum-for-Scotch riff on the Chancellor Cocktail that appeared in the Esquire Drink Book; since a chancellor is the executive or merely ceremonial head of a college, the name Professor made perfect sense. In the glass, the orange oil and rhum's grassy funk notes brightened the tawny port aroma. Next, port and vermouth's grape dominated the sip, and the swallow presented the grassy rhum melding into the grape flavors with a clove and allspice finish. Overall, the mix reminded me of a less fruity version of The Chadburn.

old man river

2/3 Rye Whiskey (1 1/2 oz Old Overholt)
1 dash Port (3/8 oz Sandeman Tawny)
1 dash Jamaican Rum (3/8 oz Coruba)
1/3 Sweet Vermouth (3/4 oz Alessio)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.
After getting home from my bartending shift Sunday two weeks ago, my need for a nightcap led me to Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933. In the American whiskey section, the curiously named Old Man River seemed like an interesting Manhattan variation that had Jamaican rum and port thrown in the mix. Once built, the Old Man River shared a grape aroma with a hint of the rum's funk. Next, the grape continued on into the sip where it mingled with the caramel notes from the dark rum, and the swallow paired the rye and Jamaican rum which blended into the bitters' spice on the finish.

newkirk

2/3 Jamaican Rum (1 oz Coruba + 1/2 oz Rumfire)
3 dash Port Wine (1 oz Sandeman Tawny)
1 dash Lemon Juice (1/2 oz)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

After getting home from Craigie on Main, I was in need of a nightcap so I reached for Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933. There in the rum section, I found the Newkirk that was similar to the Newkirk Crusta from that book except for the Crusta's citrus being lime, the presence of raspberry syrup, and the serving style. Moreover, the Newkirk contained bitters which most Crustas (save for the ones in Pioneers such as the Newkirk Crusta) often do. Also, the combination of rum, citrus, wine of some sort, and bitters reminded me of the Fig Leaf Cocktail.
For Jamaican rums, I went with a combo of funky ones - one dark and one white; in retrospect, perhaps a smoother Jamaican such as an Appleton mixed with a touch of something funky might do better here. Luckily, I love rum funk and it began in the aroma department where it joined a hint of the port's grape. The grape continued on into the sip where it mingled with the lemon and the Coruba's caramel notes, and the swallow offered the return of funky rum elements that were mellowed by the port. Finally, the drink finished with lemon and allspice flavors.

robert johnson swizzle

2 oz Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon (Larceny)
3/4 oz Otima 10 Year Tawny Port (Sandeman)
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
3/4 oz Vanilla Syrup

Build in a Collins glass, add crushed ice, and swizzle to mix and chill. Add 2 dash Fee's Whiskey Barrel Bitters and 3 dash Peychaud's Bitters, and swizzle in to the top layer. Garnish with a mint sprig.
Two Sundays ago, I wrapped up the end of my work week by peering into the Death & Co. Cocktail Book for a recipe. There, I was drawn to the Swizzle section and found Brian Miller's 2009 tribute to American blues musician Robert Leroy Johnson. Once prepared, the Robert Johnson Swizzle shared a cinnamon, mint, and vanilla aroma. Next, lemon, malt, and grape on the sip gave way to Bourbon and complementary vanilla notes on the swallow.

the chadburn

2 oz Blended Aged Rum (El Dorado 5 Year)
1/2 oz Tawny Port (Sandeman)
1/2 oz Natural Pear Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
6 drop Bittermens Mole Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a coupe glass.

To cap off my Sunday night two weeks ago, I looked for a stirred drink in the Smuggler's Cove Cocktail Book. Martin Cate's The Chadburn was one that I had spotted over the summer, but I had skipped over it since I was favoring more citrus-forward recipes at the time. With the chilly weather, it seemed the perfect season to try his tribute to the Chadburn Telegraph which was used on ships and submarines to communicate with the engine room.
The Chadburn's port wine played a significant role in this cocktail starting in the aroma realm where the grape notes were joined by hints of aged rum. The grape continued on into the sip where it mingled with the rum's caramel and hints of the pear liqueur. And finally, the rum combined with the grape on the swallow along with a chocolate and pear finish.