west fens

1 1/2 oz Tuthilltown's Hudson Manhattan Rye
3/4 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth
1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
2 dash Jerry Thomas Decanter Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a brandied cherry on the side.

For my last cocktail at the Citizen Public House, bartender Sean Frederick recommended a drink he created in the Manhattan vein. His tribute to the bar's neighborhood, the West Fens, was first created for bartender Jeff Grdinich (now of Drink, then of White Mountain Cider Co.) when he first sat at the Citizen's bar. Jeff requested a drink that would pair up with the pork schnitzel he had ordered. Sean has made the drink with a variety of ryes in the past, and this time he selected one from Tuthilltown in New York State.
The rye shone through on the West Fens' aroma along with the Aperol's fruit note, and the whiskey continued on as a spicy malt flavor in the sip that played well with the Carpano Antica. Next, the rye's barrel notes appeared at the beginning of the swallow along with the bitters' clove, and the swallow closed with the Maraschino liqueur flavor. The drink's recipe somewhat reminded me of Paul Clarke's Two Birds; however, Paul's use of crème de cacao and Peychaud's Bitters took the drink in a different direction than Sean's use of Maraschino and Decanter Bitters.

scarlet swizzle

2 oz Scarlet Ibis Rum
1/2 oz Yellow Chartreuse
2 oz Don's Mix (*)
4 dash Bittermens Tiki Bitters

Build in a Collins glass. Add crushed ice and swizzle until the glass begins to frost over. Garnish with a grapefruit twist and 4 mists of St. Elizabeth's Allspice Dram. Add a straw.
(*) 3 parts white grapefruit to 1 part cinnamon syrup. Note that this varies from the regular Don's Mix which is 2 parts grapefruit to 1 part cinnamon syrup; 1 1/2 oz of regular Don's Mix + 1/2 oz of grapefruit juice should be equivalent.

Two Mondays ago, Andrea and I got dinner at the Citizen after my DJ gig. For my first drink, I asked bartender Sean Frederick for the Scarlet Swizzle that replaced the 19th Century Swizzle on the menu. While the 19th Century Swizzle called for Smith & Cross as the base spirit, the Scarlet Swizzle acquired its name from the Scarlet Ibis Rum from Trinidad & Tobago. Scarlet Ibis was created by request for Death & Co. by blending a variety of 3-5 year old rums to pack a funky, strong punch.
The Scarlet Swizzle's nose was full of grapefruit oil and allspice notes that combined to proffer a clove-like aroma. The grapefruit from the Don's Mix mingled with the aged rum's caramel notes on the sip, and the rum's heat and funk appeared along with the Don's Mix's cinnamon on the swallow.

autumn sweater

2 oz Laird's Applejack
1/4 oz Averna
1/4 Cinzano Sweet Vermouth
2 dash Bittermens Mole Bitters
1 Sugar Cube

Muddle sugar cube with bitters. Add rest of ingredients and ice, stir, and strain into a rocks glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
The other drink I had at the Independent two Sundays ago when Evan Harrison was guest bartending was the Autumn Sweater. Evan described the drink to be like an Applejack Old Fashioned, but the addition of the sweet vermouth and Averna would add some greater depth to the mix. The Autumn Sweater greeted my nose with a bright orange oil aroma with lower notes from the Averna and possibly the sweet vermouth. The sip started as an apple and rich caramel taste that gained grape flavors over time as the drink warmed up. The swallow then showcased the Averna's spice notes and the bitter's chocolate ones to round out the drink.

this, that, the other

2 oz Maurin Quina
1 oz Chinaco Blanco Tequila
1/2 oz Graham Six Grapes Port
1 dash Housemade Lime Bitters (*)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a lime twist.
(*) Possibly a lime peel tincture. Scrappy's sells a lime bitters, and muddling lime peels in the tequila and letting it sit for several minutes might work in a pinch.

Two weeks ago, we heard that Evan Harrison was going to be doing a guest bartending gig at his old haunt, the Independent, that Sunday. Currently, Evan is between jobs after he left Deep Ellum but before Brick & Mortar opens up in another week or two; thus, he has been doing guest stints around town to stay in shape including a night at Craigie on Main. Since we were unable to make the Craigie on Main one, we were quite pleased to attend this one.
The cocktail I picked off the menu, the "This, That, the Other," was a tequila aperitif akin to the Metexa but with richer, fruitier flavors. Furthermore, the combination of Maurin Quina and tequila appealed to me for it worked rather well in Scott Holliday's Tequila Scaffa. The drink presented a tequila and lime oil aroma that led into a rich cherry-grape fruit sip from the Maurin Quina and port. Next, the swallow offered up the complementary duo of tequila and lime peel notes.

catcher in the rye

1 1/2 oz Rye (Sazerac 6 Year)
1 oz Amontillado Sherry (Lustau Dry)
1/2 oz Torani Amer
1/4 oz Grand Marnier
1 dash Abbott's Bitters (*)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
(*) The recipe recommends subbing vanilla bean-infused Angostura or vanilla-bean infused Jerry Thomas Decanter Bitters; however, regular Angostura Bitters should work fine here.

For a nightcap two Saturdays ago, I decided to make a drink created by Brooke Arthur of Prospect in San Francisco. The recipe which appeared in the May/June issue of Imbibe Magazine was entitled the Catcher in the Rye; besides the whiskey element alluded to in the name, it contained some interesting sounding orange and grape elements. While I used Sazerac 6 Year Rye, the two whiskeys she has used in the past for her J.D. Salinger tribute are Wild Turkey and Rittenhouse 100 Ryes which are both on the spicier side.
The Catcher in the Rye began with a variety of orange aromas from the twist, Torani Amer, and Grand Marnier. The orange notes continued on in the sip where they joined the sherry's grape. The nuttier aspect of the Amontillado sherry fell in the swallow along with the rye and the Abbott's Bitters spice. The bitters definitely tied the drink together and gave a bit of complexity that was more noticeable here than in other recipes. Moreover, the recipe seemed to be a few dashes of Maraschino liqueur shy from completely reminding me of a Hoskins Cocktail regardless of the different base spirit. Overall, in Andrea's words, the Catcher in the Rye was a "very nice, very dry sherry cocktail."

newton's downfall

1 1/2 oz Old Overholt Rye
1/2 oz Averna
1/2 oz Orange Juice
1/4 oz Acid Phosphate
1/4 oz Cinnamon Syrup
1 barspoon Fig Jam
2 dash Scrappy's Chocolate Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass filled with chipped ice. Garnish with an orange twist and add straws.

For my second drink at Stoddard's, I asked bartender Tony Iamunno if he had any drinks he was working on. He mentioned that he had a drink called Newton's Downfall; I was expecting an apple drink for I imagined a Sir Isaac theme, but Tony meant the cookie. Through a spoonful of fig jam in conjunction with the other flavors in the mix, the drink reminded Tony of a Fig Newton. Also of note was how Tony supplemented a softer citrus fruit juice, namely orange, with acid phosphate's crispness to balance the sweetness in the drink similar to how lemon or lime juice alone would.
The Newton's Downfall had an orange oil aroma with fig notes poking through. A crisp orange sip presented the Averna's caramel and the rye's malt, and the swallow showcased the spicier aspects of the rye and Averna along with fig and cinnamon flavors. As the ice melted, the chocolate notes from the bitters began to appear and the fig became more prominent.

boston bog

1 1/2 oz Vodka Beefeater Gin
1/2 oz Plymouth Sloe Gin
1 1/2 oz Cranberry Juice
1/4 oz Ginger Syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass filled with chipped ice. Garnish with 4 fresh cranberries and add straws.
Two Fridays ago, Andrea and I went to Stoddard's Fine Food & Ale for drinks. For my first libation, I asked bartender Tony Iamunno for the Boston Bog off of the menu. Instead of the vodka base, I requested gin for I felt that it would work well with the sloe gin and ginger syrup flavors. The gin paid dividends in the nose where it contributed a great botanical note, and this led into a fruit-driven sip with flavors from the sloe gin and cranberry juice. The swallow possessed gin notes with a lingering ginger aftertaste. As the ice melted, the tartness of the cranberry juice started to come through along with a greater juniper signature from the gin.

la bateleur

2 oz Beefeater Gin
3/4 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Strega
1/4 oz Cynar
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

After Alex Day's Gran Paradiso, I recalled another one of his recipes that I had spotted in Gary Regan's Bartender's Gin Compendium called La Bateleur. La Bateleur was a drink that Alex created while he was still at Death & Co. in Manhattan. The name translates into the magician and is one of the cards in the Tarot deck; since Strega means witch in Italian, the drink's name made sense.
The cocktail began with an aroma of the gin and lemon twist with perhaps hints of the Punt e Mes. The sip presented a sweet spiced grape flavor that was followed by Cynar and Punt e Mes in the beginning of the swallow and Strega and gin at the end. Indeed, the rather herbal swallow began with bitter notes and ended with spiced ones including a wormwood-cinnamon sort of note.

gran paradiso

2 oz Barbera de Monferrato Wine (Bear Flag Red)
1 oz Ceylon Tea, chilled (Oolong)
1 oz Famous Grouse Blended Scotch
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Simple Syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass containing a large ice cube. Garnish with freshly grated nutmeg.

For Thanksgiving, we were lucky to not have to face all the traffic this year, and instead Andrea and I stayed home and cooked. In wondering what to do with the rest of the bottle of red wine we had opened, Andrea found an article about wine cocktails in 7x7SF that had recipes from Alex Day, a former bartender at Death & Co. who is now a consultant in Los Angeles. The one that called out to me was the Gran Paradiso that had a classic punch-like feel to it.
The Gran Paradiso presented a Scotch and nutmeg aroma. This relatively dry drink began with lemon and wine flavors on the sip. The swallow contained the Scotch including some smoke notes that worked well with the tea; moreover, the tea along with the wine donated a lingering tannin note on the aftertaste. With the whiskey, wine, and lemon, the Gran Paradiso reminded me of the 19th century New York Sour.