equator

3/4 Swedish Punsch (1 1/2 oz Kronan)
2 dash Sweet Vermouth (1/2 oz Cocchi)
1/4 Grapefruit Juice (1/2 oz)
1 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.
After the Subterranean Swizzle, I began searching for a light drink to end the evening. Inside Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933 I spotted the Equator which was a curious Swedish Punsch recipe. Its pairing of sweet vermouth and grapefruit juice was one that I remember working rather well in the rye-based Standish Arms. The Equator began with a funky rum and grapefruit aroma that flowed into a sweet fruity sip from the grapefruit juice and the vermouth's grape. Finally, the swallow offered up rum, a tea-like spice note, and orange from the bitters.

subterranean swizzle

1 oz Appleton Reserve Rum
1 oz Osocalis Brandy (Pedro Domecq Fundador Solera Reserva)
1/2 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz BG Reynolds Cinnamon Syrup
1/2 oz Lemon Juice

Build in a Collins glass filled with crushed ice. Swizzle to mix and chill. Top with more ice, garnish with "Improved Bitters" (2 parts Angostura, 2 parts Luxardo Maraschino, 1 part absinthe) and mint sprigs, and add a straw. I garnished with 1 tsp of this bitters mix, although the contest recipe uses Fee Brothers' Aromatic Bitters.

Two Saturdays ago, I was in the mood for a Swizzle to sooth the evening's heat. The one I chose was the Subterranean Swizzle in Gary Regan's 101 Best New Cocktails 2012. Brian MacGregor of Jasper's Corner Tap in San Francisco created this recipe for the Appleton Remixology contest. The song that inspired his drink was the Red Hot Chili Peppers cover of Bob Dylan's Subterranean Homesick Blues, and you can watch a video of him making the drink here.
The mint garnish contributed greatly to the drink's aroma. The lemon sip was followed by the rum, pineapple, and cinnamon flavors. Towards the end, the bitters mix entered into the equation with light Maraschino, anise, and spice notes.

3185

1 1/2 oz Banks Rum
1/2 oz Barbancourt Rum
1/2 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Honey Syrup
1/4 oz Gran Classico
1/4 oz Peychaud's Bitters
2 inch piece English Cucumber (no peel)

Cube the cucumber and muddle. Add rest of ingredients and ice, shake, and double strain into a Highball glass containing ice. Top with ~2 oz Reading Lager beer and add a straw.

For my next drink, I asked bartender Jeff Grdinich if he had any sparkling wine or beer cocktail ideas. Jeff replied that they had created an intriguing watermelon-flavored beer Highball that used the Gun Shop Fizz from Beta Cocktails as a starting point. As a tribute to the New Orleans origins of their inspiration, they named the Fizz after the police codes for drunk and disorderly, forgery, and shots fired in New Orleans.
The 3185 offered up a pleasing beer and vegetal aroma from perhaps the muddled cucumber. Indeed, the sip was a sweet watermelon flavor despite there not being any watermelon in the drink; I surmise that the Aperol played a large part in this. Finally, the drink concluded with rum and bitter notes. Overall, the 3185 was a bit on the sweet side for me but it was definitely an unique and enjoyable Highball.

[headkick]

1 oz Willet Rye
1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
3/4 oz Kümmel
1/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse
1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters
1 dash Celery Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass. Twist a lemon peel over the top.

Two Fridays ago, I stopped into Drink right after it opened and beat the post-work rush. For a first cocktail, I told bartender Jeff Grdinich that I was in the mood for whiskey. What he improvised was an herbal medley that shared some similarity with a classic drink called the High Kick which is equal parts rye, dry vermouth, and kümmel. Since Jeff did not have a name for his drink, I dubbed it the Headkick with perhaps Brick and Mortar's Flying Headlock in mind.
The cocktail offered a fresh lemon oil aroma that led into a sweet honey sip. Next, the complex swallow began with rye followed by kümmel's spice notes that finished with vegetal notes from perhaps the celery bitters.

margaret rose

1/3 Gin (1 oz GrandTen Wireworks)
1/3 Calvados (1 oz Morin Selection)
1/6 Cointreau (1/2 oz)
1/6 Lemon Juice (1/2 oz)
1 dash Grenadine (1 barspoon)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.
While drinking L'Aurore, I grabbed the Café Royal Cocktail Book and began flipping through the pages until I found the Margaret Rose created by the UK Bartender's Guild member J.W. Fish. With a split spirit of gin and apple brandy, the recipe reminded me a bit of the Blue Skies I had at Green Street. The Margaret Rose's aroma was fruity from the apple and orange notes. Similarly, the sip was citrussy with some apple flavors. The apple notes though were strongest in the swallow where it was dried out by the gin. Overall, the Margaret Rose made for a rather pleasing Daisy.

l'aurore

2/3 Old Tom Gin (1 1/2 oz Ransom)
1/3 Sweet Vermouth (3/4 oz Cocchi Vermouth di Torino)
1 dash Gum Syrup (1/4 oz Simple)
1 dash Maraschino Liqueur (1/4 oz Luxardo)
1 dash Absinthe (1/4 oz Kübler)
2 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with fruit (cherry).

Two Thursdays ago, I was flipping through William Schmidt's The Flowing Bowl from 1892 and spotted the L'Aurore. The drink seemed like an interesting Martinez-like drink that also shared similarity with his Angelus. With L'Aurore meaning "the dawn," I am unsure if this was meant as a foglifter in the morning or whether it was just part of his astronomical drink naming tendency like The Sun.
The L'Aurore began with a Maraschino and anise aroma that led into a grape and spice sip. The savory gin flavors appeared on the swallow along with the Maraschino and absinthe, and the drink offered a delightful lingering chocolate note at the end.

last caress

2 oz Old Overholt Rye
3/4 oz Benedictine
1/4 oz Del Maguey Minero Mezcal (Mezcal Vida)
1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
2 dash Angostura Bitters

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

Two Wednesdays ago, I was flipping through Gary Regan's 101 Best New Cocktails 2012 and spotted the Last Caress from Dan Carlson of Saul in Brooklyn. The combination of rye and mezcal has worked well before in drinks like the Red Ant and the Racketeer, so I was willing to give this one a try.
The Last Caress greeted the nose with a lemon oil, smoke, and rye aroma. The rye's malt on the sip was followed by whiskey, herbal, and light smoky notes on the swallow and a Maraschino finish. Overall, the Last Caress was like a gussied up Frisco with the Maraschino notes being the biggest difference from the classic.

figawi

2 oz Banks Rum
3/4 oz Five Spice Syrup (recipe)
3/4 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass.
Two Mondays ago, we waited for a break in the rain and then headed into the Citizen Public House where Sabrina Kershaw and Sean Frederick were bartending. For a drink, I asked Sabrina for the Figawi named after an annual charity boat race from Hyannis to Nantucket each Memorial Day weekend. The regatta apparently got its name when one of the boats got a little lost and the question "Where the fuck are we?" sounded a little different with a strong Massachusetts accent. The drink itself offered a star anise aroma from the syrup that played well with the lime notes. Lime juice on the sip was followed by the funky rum and spice that dried off the swallow. At first, cinnamon and anise notes were most discernible, and later a peppercorn flavor came out.

start of a new road

1/2 oz Lagavulin Scotch
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz Green Chartreuse
3/4 oz Neisson Rhum Agricole Blanc
3/4 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass.

While I was finishing my Roots of Rum at Backbar, Steven Shellenberger sat down and asked bartender Sam Treadway for "something ruthless." To that request, Sam offered up a riff on Chris McMillian's End of the Road that appears in Beta Cocktails. Chris' drink is equal parts Laphroaig 10 Year Scotch, Campari, and Green Chartreuse. Sam substituted another smoky Scotch, namely Lagavulin but otherwise kept the drink the same in the first half of the volume. To the other half of the volume, he balanced the drink with rhum agricole and lime juice. Since the pairing of rhum agricole and Scotch worked so well in Ben Sandrof's Two Worlds Sour, I asked Sam for this Start of a New Road as my next drink.
The Start of a New Road's aroma was mostly smoky with some rhum and Green Chartreuse herbal notes poking through. A dry malt and lime sip preceded a smoky Scotch and grassy rhum swallow. At the end was a bitter note that was unlike either Green Chartreuse or Campari. When I mentioned this to Sam, he commented that the Campari only comes through in the color for him.