the get down

1 1/2 oz Rhum Barbancourt 8 Year
1/2 oz Old Monk Rum
1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino
1/4 oz Demerara Syrup

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass rinsed with absinthe (St. George), add a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Mondays ago, I returned to the online recipe flashcards for Ward 8 in Boston that I had not utilized since the Bear Skin Rug in late February. There, I decided on the Get Down circa 2017 that read like a two rum Improved Cocktail with the Maraschino and absinthe accents, and I was excited to have a chance to dust off my bottle of Old Monk Rum which once was a staple in the Boston cocktail community. In the glass, the Get Down revealed an orange, anise, chocolate, and nutty cherry aroma. Next, caramel and cherry notes on the sip progressed into dark rum, nutty cherry, and anise flavors on the swallow.

mean fiddler

1 oz Green Spot Irish Whiskey (Teeling Small Batch)
1/2 oz Bowmore 12 Year Scotch (Ardbeg 10 Year)
3/4 oz Cocchi Sweet Vermouth
3/4 oz Green Chartreuse
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 tsp Cinnamon Syrup
1 dash Aromatic Bitters (Scrappy's)

Stir with ice, strain into a Nick & Nora (coupe) glass, and garnish with a flamed orange twist (unflamed).Two Sundays ago, I ventured back to the online recipe flashcards for the Dead Rabbit and latched on to the Mean Fiddler by Jillian Vose for the Fall 2015 menu. The concept reminded me of a whiskey Tailspin of sorts with the vermouth, but also the End of the Road without it. Once stirred and strained, the Mean Fiddler struck up an orange, peat smoke, and herbaceous bouquet for the nose. Next, grape and malt notes mingled on the sip, and the swallow came through with smoky whiskey, bitter orange, herbal, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

gold drop

1 oz Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
1 oz Cynar
3/4 oz Honey Syrup
3/4 oz Lemon Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass rinsed with orange blossom water.Two Saturdays ago, I was perusing the online recipe collection for the menuless speakeasy Idlewild in Charlotte, North Carolina, when I spotted the Gold Drop. The drink had the same spirit, Cynar, honey, and lemon idea as the Michigander but with Bourbon instead of apple brandy. With Bourbon, it reminded me of embittered Gold Rush riffs like the Rose Gold with Campari, Golden Ticket with Montenegro, Without a Trace with Nonino, and Pull up to the Bumper with Abano. Once prepared, the Gold Drop proffered orange blossom water and caramel-vegetal aromas. Next, honey, lemon, and caramel notes on the sip opened up into Bourbon, vegetal, and floral flavors on the swallow.

night train

2 oz Overproof Bourbon (Old Grand-Dad Bonded)
1/2 oz Cynar
1/2 oz Amaro Ciociaro
1 dash Amargo Vallet or sub Angostura Bitters (Angostura)

Stir with ice, strain into a Nick & Nora glass, and garnish with an orange twist.Two Fridays prior, I spotted a drink in Imbibe Magazine from back in 2022 called the Night Train. The recipe was created by Garrett Flanagan at Pebble Bar in New York City as a Manhattan-Boulevardier hybrid. Since the Cynar-Ciociaro combination worked so well in the Two Gents that it inspired me to craft the Smith & Cross Daiquiri riff Saucy Minion, I was game to try this one out. In the glass, the Night Train showcased an orange, Bourbon, and caramel aroma. Next, a caramel and orange sip progressed into Bourbon, vegetal herbal, orange peels and pith, and clove flavors on the swallow.

le tour

1 1/2 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
3/4 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Elderflower Liqueur (St. Elder)
1 tsp Green Chartreuse

Stir with ice and strain into a coupe glass.Two Thursdays ago, I opened up Jacob Grier and Brett Adams' Raising the Bar book and spotted the Le Tour as their attempt at a floral Cognac Manhattan. The idea reminded me of the Fleur Carré that I created on the fly at Drink as my attempt at fulfilling a floral De La Louisiane request. Moreover, the elderflower-Chartreuse duo made me think of this as a Cognac and dry vermouth version of the gin and lime juice Gypsy from Bourbon & Branch (that I need to make and write up here soon after mixing lots of them when it was on the menu at Our Fathers gin bar) or of the gin and Lillet Albert Mathieu. Once prepared, the Le Tour propagated a floral aroma along with Cognac's richness to the nose. Next, pear and white grape notes on the sip transition into Cognac, floral, and herbal flavors on the swallow.

pipe dreams

2 oz Gin (Beefeater)
1/2 oz Strega
1/2 oz Suze
1/8 oz Honey Syrup
1 dash Peach Bitters (Fee's)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist.Two Wednesdays ago, I had noted a recipe from Parla in Boston that was a curious stirred gin drink called the Pipe Dreams that I found in an online set of recipe flashcards and later confirmed on the bar's Instagram. The drink was crafted by Pat Panageas (as described on their social media) as part of the Dungeon Master list of twenty drinks. The idea is that imbibers roll a 20-sided die to pick a drink and slowly work their way through the list to make it to the next level. The Pipe Dreams reminded me of the original 1920s Yellow Cocktail of gin, Yellow Chartreuse, and Suze (later adapted to include lemon juice) especially considering how close Yellow Chartreuse and Strega are as shown by the history of The Eulogy. Once prepared, the Pipe Dreams flowed out to the nose with lemon, gentian herbal, and floral aromas. Next, a honey-laden sip opened up into gin, bright, earthy, and pine flavors on the swallow with a honey-peach finish.

the fountain

1 1/2 oz Old-Grand Dad 114° Bourbon
3/4 oz Zucca (Sfumato)
1/4 oz Cherry Heering
1 dash Dram Black Bitters or other Aromatic Bitters (Jerry Thomas Decanter)

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with a lemon twist.Tuesdays two weeks ago, I was perusing the KindredCocktails database when I came across the Fountain by Chad Heuge. Chad created the drink at Longman & Eagle in Chicago, and the recipe was published by Vanity Fair in a 2015 article on Father's Day drinks. Intriguingly, he described his Father's Day-inspired Manhattan riff as "an homage to history, progression, and regression." I had previously had Cherry Heering and Zucca in Sahil Mehta's Estocada with mezcal and lime juice, so I was curious to see how it would do in a Bourbon Old Fashioned or Black Manhattan format. In the glass, the Fountain cascaded to the nose with lemon, roast, and cherry aromas. Next, a dark cherry- and roast-driven sip flowed into Bourbon, bitter herbal, and red fruit flavors on the swallow.

hero's death

3/4 oz Highland Park 12 Year Scotch (1/2 oz Highland Park Cask Strength + 1/4 oz Water)
3/4 oz Russell's Reserve 10 Year Bourbon (Old Grand-Dad Bonded)
1/4 oz Tempus Fugit Banana Liqueur
1 tsp Pedro Ximenez Sherry (El Maestro Sierra)
1/2 tsp Cinnamon Syrup

Stir with ice, strain into a single old fashioned glass, and garnish with orange oil from a twist.Two Mondays prior, I ventured back to the online recipe flashcards for Death & Co. Denver and landed on the Scotch-Bourbon stirred drink called the Hero's Death from their Summer 2024 menu. The structure reminded me of Al Sotack's Some Weird Sin at the New York City branch of Death & Co. with the split base plus Pedro Ximenez and cinnamon syrup accents. In the glass, the Hero's Death welcomed the nose with orange, dark fruit, hint of smoke, and cinnamon aromas. Next, a fruity grape sip ascended to Scotch, raisin, caramelized banana, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

third time's the charm

1 oz Blackwell Rum (Coruba)
1/2 oz Planteray Dark Rum
1/2 oz Clement Creole Shrubb (Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao)
1/2 oz Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
2 dash Chocolate Bitters (Bittermens)

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe.Two Sundays ago, I returned to the same online recipe flashcard sets from the Old Pal in Athens, Georgia, that I found the Monkey Wrench. The drink that I became curious about was the Third Time's The Charm from their Fall 2023 menu. Overall, it seemed like an interesting riff, but of what? A spicy Cable Car or perhaps the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club? One of my Instagram friends even suggested a chili variation on the Periodista. Once prepared, the Third Time's the Charm offered up caramel, orange, and roast pepper aromas. Next, lemon, orange, and caramel notes on the sip gave way to dark funky rum, orange, and pepper spice flavors on the swallow.