working in a coal mine

1 1/2 oz Scotch (Cutty Sark Prohibition)
1/2 oz Punt e Mes
1/2 oz Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
1/2 oz Walnut Liqueur (Rosso Nocino)
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash Orange Bitters

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

Two Mondays ago, I was still thinking about Misty Kalkofen's Human Rocket that I featured in a video for work. Therefore, I kept the apricot-walnut aspect intact as I riffed on this concept. Instead of Bourbon, I opted for Scotch which worked well with walnut in cocktails like the Storm King and My Triumphs, My Mistakes, and I swapped out the gentian liqueur for Punt e Mes and dashes of bitters. For a name, I kept with the Human Rocket's DEVO theme and named it after another of their songs -- Working in the Coal Mine.The Working in a Coal Mine dug up an orange, smoke, walnut, and grape aroma. Next, Punt e Mes' grape joined the Scotch's malt on the sip, and the swallow proffered smoky whisky and bitter apricot flavors with a walnut finish.

pleasure and pain

1 3/4 oz Batavia Arrack
1/2 oz Nux Alpina (Russo Nocino)
1/2 oz Branca Menta
1/4 oz Benedictine

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe.Two Sundays ago, I was intrigued with a recipe that I had spotted on the Kindred Cocktails database -- namely, the Pleasure and Pain that Misty Kalkofen created at Brick & Mortar in 2012. Misty's use of walnut liqueur in the Human Rocket, In Vida Veritas, Sentimental Gentleman, and other drinks made me curious as to what she saw in its pairing with Batavia Arrack. Moreover, the duo of Branca Menta and Benedictine in the mix intrigued me. Once prepared, the Pleasure and Pain conjured a minty and menthol aroma. Next, a caramel-driven sip cracked into funky Batavia Arrack, earthy walnut, and Fernet's gentian and mint flavors on the swallow. Overall, I was impressed at how well the Branca Menta kept the Batavia Arrack in check.

the west end

1 1/2 oz Bourbon (2 oz Four Roses)
1/2 oz Dolin Blanc Vermouth
1/2 oz Amaro Nonino
3 dash Apple Bitters (Dashfire)

Stir with ice, strain into a rocks glass (coupe), and garnish with a flamed orange twist (unflamed).Two Saturdays ago, I returned to a recipe that I had spotted in the 2013 whiskey booklet in The Cocktail Hour series when I made the Rusty Roy. That drink was the West End which was Sue Erickson's Manhattan riff named after the neighborhood in Portland where Grüner -- the restaurant she worked at -- resides. In the glass, the West End welcomed the nose with an orange and Bourbon aroma. Next, malt, white grape, and apple notes on the sip transferred to Bourbon and orange flavors on the swallow.

the mankiller

1 oz Del Maguey Mezcal Vida (Fidencio)
1 oz Lustau Manzanilla Sherry (La Gitana)
1/2 oz Bigallet China-China (Torani Amer)
1/4 oz Averna
1/4 oz Luxardo Aperitivo (Martini Aperitivo)
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with an orange twist and a chamomile flower (skip the latter garnish).For Friday night's libation two weeks ago, I selected the Drinking Like Ladies book and spotted the Mankiller. The recipe was crafted by Anne Marie Sagol at Denver's Occidental and Williams & Graham, and she spun the drink around the life story of Wilma Mankiller who was an activist and politician that fought for Native Americans' rights. Once prepared, the Mankiller greeted the senses with bright orange oil over smoky mezcal aromas with darker notes from the bitter liqueurs. Next, an orange and caramel sip dove into smoke, vegetal, bitter, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

st. louis-style whiskey punch

1 1/2 oz Bourbon (Angel's Envy)
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (Cocchi)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/2 oz Lemon Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. No garnish is specified but a lemon or orange twist or perhaps a pineapple wedge would be great here.For Black History Month, I delved into Tom Bullock's 1917 The Ideal Bartender. Bullock wrote this book after having tended bar for 25 years; it is the first cocktail book written by an African American author, and it was one of the last books to be published in America before Prohibition and provides great insight into what folks were drinking before the Bullock and fellow bartenders' careers were cut short. After having gotten his start in Louisville where Bullock worked at esteemed spots such as the Kenton and Pendennis Club, he moved on to St. Louis, Missouri, to work at the St. Louis Country Club. One of his famous patrons there penned the introduction to the book and touted Bullock’s talents behind the stick, "I doubt if he has erred in even one of his concoctions." The St. Louis Style Whiskey Punch caught my eye. To hear more about Tom Bullock and his book and to see me make the drink, please watch this video that I made for my brand work account. In the glass, the punch mixed Bourbon flavors with fruitier ones from the vermouth, pineapple syrup, and lemon, and these aspects put bright accents on the whiskey itself.

crop top

3/4 oz Beefeater 24 Gin (regular Beefeater)
3/4 oz Amaro Montenegro
3/4 oz Giffard Grapefruit Liqueur (St. Elder)
3/4 oz Lemon Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a Nick & Nora glass.

Two Thursdays ago, I ventured into the Cocktail Codex book and spied the Crop Top. This equal parts number was created by Devon Tarby in 2013 using the Last Word as the structure. For flavors, Devon was influenced by the 1934 Zombie's Don's Mix of grapefruit and cinnamon; here, the grapefruit was from the liqueur and the cinnamon from the Amaro Montenegro. I was so taken in by the drink development story that I did not realize that it was the gin for Bourbon version of the Triple Crown that I had a week and a half prior.In the glass, the Crop Top showcased a grapefruit and pineapple aroma. Next, lemon and orange on the sip slipped into gin, grapefruit, cinnamon, and nectarine flavors.

rusty roy

2 oz Famous Grouse Scotch
1/2 oz Drambuie
1/2 oz Lillet (Cocchi Americano)
3 dash Peychaud's Bitters
1 dash Angostura Bitters

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

Two Wednesdays ago, I returned to my The Cocktail Hour collection and selected the Rusty Roy from the 2013 whiskey booklet. This cross between a Rusty Nail and a Rob Roy was crafted by Shawn Vegara at San Francisco's Blackbird, and the combination reminded me of the Bournemouth Limited from the 1937 Café Royal Cocktail Book.The Rusty Roy welcomed the senses with a lemon, anise, and honey aroma. Next, the honey continued into the sip along with a pear-like note, and the swallow came through with Scotch, herbal, clove, and anise flavors.

maximo di negroni

1 oz Beefeater 24 Gin (regular Beefeater)
1 oz Punt e Mes
1 oz Amaro Nonino

Build in an old fashioned glass, add ice, stir, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Tuesdays ago, I reached for Gary Regan's The Negroni Book and perused for a drink that I had not made yet. There, I spotted the Maximo di Negroni which I had passed by previously for I lacked Amaro Nonino at the home bar until very recently. The recipe was crafted by Shawn Soole then of Little Jumbo Restaurant & Bar in Victoria, British Columbia; Shawn also stewards an amazing online series called the Post Shift Podcast that is worth checking out. The Maximo di Negroni met the nose with an orange, dark grape, and pine aroma. Next, Punt e Mes' grape continued on into the sip where it mingled with caramel and orange notes from the amaro, and the swallow rounded things off with gin and bitter herbal flavors driven mostly by the Punt e Mes.

shadow boxer

1 1/2 oz Yaguara Cachaça (Salina Umbarana)
3/4 oz Campari
3/4 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/4 oz Blume Apricot Eau De Vie (Shelakh)
1/4 oz Giffard Grapefruit Liqueur (St. Elder)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Mondays ago, I returned back to Carey Jones' Brooklyn Bartender and spotted Ivy Mix's Shadow Boxer that she created at Leyenda. Other recipes that I later found had this served in a rocks glass over ice, and they suggested that it was crafted in 2016. This cachaça Negroni of sorts met the nose with an orange oil, funky, grassy, grapefruit, and apricot aroma. Next, a peach-like sip led into funky, grassy, grapefruit, and bitter orange flavors on the swallow with an apricot finish. It was rather curious as to how the grapefruit, apricot, and orange elements individually faded in and out over various sips.