horror hotel

1 oz Mezcal (Fidencio)
1/2 oz Apple Brandy (Laird's Bonded)
1/2 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
1/2 oz Cynar
2 dash Fee's Whiskey Barrel Bitters (or Fee's Old Fashioned)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with an orange twist.

As Halloween was approaching, I decided to craft this Autumnal smoky and bitter number as a The Misfits musical tribute. I was inspired by the Fall on Me to create a music-themed drink that utilized the apricot-herbal liqueur combination, and The Misfits fit the then approaching holiday. For this concept's herbal liqueur, I opted for Cynar which paired well with apricot in the One One Thousand, and apricot-Punt e Mes has proven to be a winner such as in the Slope. The song that matched the drink's and evening's feel was the Horror Hotel that they named after the 1960 movie.The Horror Hotel crept to the nose with an orange, smoke, vegetal funk, and cinnamon aroma. Next, caramel and apple flavors on the sip lurched into a smoky and bitter apricot swallow with a cinnamon-tinged finish.

right hand

1 1/2 oz Eagle Rare Bourbon (Old Grand-Dad Bonded)
1/2 oz Arkansas Black Brandy (Morin Calvados)
1/2 oz Suze Gentian Liqueur
1/2 oz Cinnamon Demerara Syrup
2 dash Fee's Walnut Bitters (Strongwater)

Stir with ice, strain into a Nick & Nora glass, and garnish with oil from an orange twist.

Two Wednesdays ago, I selected Drinking Like Ladies and reconsidered the Right Hand created by Nicole Lebedevitch at Yvonne's in Boston. I had previously passed over it for I did not want to confuse things with the better known Right Hand, but this combination of whiskey, apple brandy, gentian herbal, and cinnamon was just too tempting. Nicole named it that for it was her tribute to Marguerite LeHand, Franklin Delano Roosevelt's personal assistant and confidant. LeHand was described as "the Swiss Army Knife of the White House" for her ability to multi-task behind the scenes.The Right Hand donated an orange oil, Bourbon, and gentian bouquet to the nose. Next, apple notes from the brandy filled the sip, and the swallow displayed the Bourbon, apple, cinnamon, and earthy flavors with a walnut finish.

1903

1 oz Laird's Apple Brandy (Laird's Bonded)
1 oz Pierre Ferrand 1840 Cognac (Pierre Ferrand Ambre)
3/4 oz Cocchi Sweet Vermouth
3/4 oz Cocchi Americano
2 dash Scrappy's Grapefruit Bitters (Bittercube Jamaica #2)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe.Two Mondays ago, I ventured into The NoMad Cocktail Book and spotted Jessica Gonzalez's 1903. The 1903 reminded me of a Corpse Reviver No. 1 from the Savoy Cocktail Book with the vermouth aspect split with Cocchi Americano plus the addition of grapefruit bitters. Once prepared, the 1903 let loose an apricot, grape, and grapefruit aroma. Next, grape and pear notes on the sip led into apple, Cognac, and herbal flavors on the swallow.

take me to marrakech

1 1/2 oz Armagnac (Laressingle VSOP)
1/2 oz Honey Syrup
1/2 oz Orange Juice
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
2 dash Scrappy's Cardamom Bitters (The Bitter Housewife Cardamom)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.Two Sundays ago, I spotted the Take Me to Marrakech in Sother Teague's I'm Just Here for the Drinks that would make good use of my purchase of cardamom bitters (the ones I bought are similar in feel to Boker's Bitters). The aromas and flavors of the drink reminded Sother of the old marketplaces in Morocco which I attribute most to the exotic notes in cardamom. Once prepared, the Take Me to Marrakech proffered brandy, honey-floral, and cardamom aromas to the nose. Next, honey, lemon, and orange on the sip gave way to brandy and honey flavors on the swallow with a cardamom finish that came across very much like tea.

vivary

1/2 Italian Vermouth (1 1/2 oz Cocchi Sweet)
1/2 Dry Vermouth (1 1/2 oz Noilly Prat)
1 dash Absinthe (1/8 oz St. George)
1 dash Orange Bitters (2 dash Crude Orange-Fig)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist.Two Saturdays ago, I spotted the Vivary from the 1935 Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book in Frank Caiafa's 2016 The Waldorf Astoria Bar Book. The concept of a split vermouth base with absinthe reminded me of the Half Sinner, Half Saint, and when I made the drink, my recipe fell somewhere between the two recipes from the books above. In the glass, the Vivary displayed a lemon oil, red grape, and floral-anise aroma. Next, sweet red grape and orange notes on the sip slid into grape, herbal, anise, and fig flavors on the swallow.

bells & whistles

2 oz Old Grand-Dad 114° Bourbon
3/4 oz Bonal Gentiane Quina
1/8 oz Amontillado Sherry (Lustau)
1/8 oz Averna
1/8 oz Rothman & Winter Apricot Liqueur

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe.

Two Fridays ago, I decided to make a recipe that I had spotted on the Kindred Cocktails database called the Bells & Whistles by Kyle Davidson (of Art of Choke and Under the Volcano fame) at Blackbird in Chicago. Essentially, it was a Bourbon Manhattan with Bonal as the aromatized wine element along with a trio of modifiers. The first two modifiers were the Averna and apricot liqueur duo that I have utilized well in recipes like the Library Card and was probably introduced to in Misty Kalkofen's Cocktail Miranda at Green Street. The third modifier was a small amount of Amontillado sherry; someone commented on my Instagram post inquiring if a barspoon would really have an effect, and I related how a mere two dashes in the It's A Long, Long Way had me equally as skeptical except that the effect was most certainly there.The Bells & Whistles began with a Bourbon-forward aroma with a hint of orchard fruit on the nose. Next, grape and caramel filled the sip, and the swallow showcased the Bourbon along with herbal and nutty flavors and an apricot finish. Finally, I was impressed at how this tasty drink became even more balanced as it warmed up over time.

requiem for a doomed star

2 oz Rum Fire Overproof Jamaican Rum
1 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Vanilla Syrup
1/2 oz Cinnamon Syrup
4 dash Absinthe (1/8 oz Kübler)

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a Tiki mug, and fill with crushed ice. I garnished with a spent half lime shell and chocolate mint sprigs. No instructions were provided with the recipe, so this was how I interpreted the build.

Two Thursdays ago, Jason Alexander posted a drink on the Tiki Recipes group on Facebook, and I decided to make this curiously named number, Requiem for a Doomed Star, that evening. I was able to track down that he has been serving this drink on the Devil's Reef menu since the beginning of the year. The form reminded me a little of a Test Pilot and a Jet Pilot, and the cinnamon and vanilla combination was one found in classics like the Nui Nui and more modern ones like the Expedition.The Requiem for a Doomed Star broadcasted a chocolate mint aroma over funky rum, vanilla, cinnamon, and anise notes. Next, lime dominated the sip that transitioned into rum funk, anise, and cinnamon that came across like caraway on the swallow with vanilla and more funk on the finish.

liberal

3/4 Bourbon (2 oz Old Grand-Dad Bonded)
1/4 Amer Picon (1/2 oz Torani Amer)
1 dash Maple Syrup (1/4 oz here, next time 1/8 oz)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with a lemon twist.Two Wednesdays ago, I spotted as a note in Frank Caiafa's The Waldorf Astoria Bar Book that there was a variation on the classic Liberal Cocktail in Ted Saucier's Bottoms Up. Therefore, I retrieved my 1954 edition and found this twist that utilized maple syrup in place of sweet vermouth and orange bitters. Once the recipe crafted at the Colony Restaurant in New York City was stirred and strained, this Liberal Cocktail proffered lemon, maple, and dark orange aromas. Next, maple's richness and the whiskey's malt filled the sip, and the swallow continued on with Bourbon and dark bitter orange flavors on the swallow with a maple finish.

jimmie walker

3/4 jigger Whisky (2 1/4 oz Four Roses Bourbon) (*)
1/4 jigger Italian Vermouth (3/4 oz Cocchi Sweet)
1 dash Grenadine (1/2 oz)
1 dash Lemon Juice (1/2 oz)

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass; I added a lemon twist.
(*) Boothby used a generic "whisky" for all Bourbon, rye, and Scotch.Two Tuesdays ago, I began scanning William Boothby's 1934 World Drinks and How to Mix Them and spotted the Jimmie Walker. The name made me think of "Dyn-O-Mite!" Jimmie Walker from the Good Times comedy series; given that the recipe was recorded forty years before that television series, my second guess was that it was named after James John Walker, the mayor of New York City from 1926-1932. The feel of the drink reminded me of a Ward 8 which kept nicely with the political theme. Once prepared, the Jimmie Walker decreed a lemon, Bourbon, and berry aroma upon the nose. Next, lemon with red fruit notes on the sip carried into whiskey, grenadine, and vermouth's herbal flavors on the swallow.