mother of turin

1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
3/4 oz Gran Classico
3/4 oz Guava Syrup (*)
1 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a Collins glass with ice. Top with soda water and add a straw. Garnish with an orange twist and a cherry.
(*) Equal parts Defruta Guava Juice Concentrate and sugar. There are commercial guava syrups for sale as well.

For my last drink at the Baldwin Room in the Sichuan Garden II, bartender Ran Duan made me the Mother of Turin. Perhaps this was an extension of his tinkerings with how well Campari and passion fruit syrup pair, such as in the Cisco Bay, for here he utilized Gran Classico and a guava syrup instead. Moreover, the Mother of Turin was in the same tall format as his Rome With a Slight View.
The garnish's orange oil contributed greatly to the drink's nose. A crisp, carbonated fruity sip gave way to a tart, bitter herbal Gran Classico swallow with a tropical guava finish.

revision #3

1 1/2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
1/2 oz Nux Alpina Walnut Liqueur
1/2 oz Zucca Rabarbaro Amaro
1/2 oz Byrrh Grand Quinquina

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry.
A few Sundays ago, Andrea and I made another pilgrimage to Woburn to have dinner at Sichuan Garden II in the Baldwin Bar space. For a first drink, I asked bartender Ran Duan for the Revision #3 which appeared like an interesting Manhattan variation. I later found an old menu online that had the Amalia, the Bacardi 8 Rum version of this ingredient set that might have been what this was a revision on. Moreover, the Amalia could have been a riff on what I dubbed the Queen's Slipper that he made me a few months before. Once mixed, the Revision #3 offered an herbal grape aroma that led into a malt and grape sip that shared a Madeira sort of feel. Next, the rye came through in the swallow along with the walnut notes, and it ended with an herbal finish that was reminiscent of Cynar.

doff your hat

1 oz Genever (Bols)
3/4 oz Cynar
3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth (Dolin)
1/2 oz Grand Marnier
1 dash Orange Bitters (Regan's)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Twist an orange peel over the top.
After the Mr. Clark's Cane, I turned to the 75th anniversary edition of the Mr. Boston Official Bartender's Guide and spotted the Doff Your Hat in the gin section. The recipe was crafted by David Willhite who now bartends at Chicago's Bristol, and the combination of juniper spirit, Grand Marnier, and Cynar reminded me of Scott Holliday's Hugo Ball. Once mixed, the Doff Your Hat shared a malty aroma brightened by orange oil accents. A rich malty and grape sip then led into a swallow that began with Cynar's herbal and Genever's botanical notes and ended with Grand Marnier's orange finish.

mr. clark's cane

1 1/2 oz Fernet Branca
3/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
1/2 oz Lemon Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Two Fridays ago, I was reminded of a drink in Sanctuaria: The Dive Bar of Cocktail Bars called Mr. Clark's Cane via the ScientistMcGee blog. Since Fernet Branca and Maraschino liqueur pair so well in drinks that use a little like the Newark to decent amounts like the Root of All Evil, I was curious to see what would happen if they made up most of the drink. The Mr. Clark in question was the author's former boss who asked him for a bitter-sweet cocktail one evening.
Mr. Clark's Cane began with an herbal menthol and sweet, nutty cherry aroma. Next, the sip offered the lemon flavors with a hint of cherry, and the swallow showcased the Fernet Branca herbal notes that were softened by funky Maraschino flavors. Finally, the swallow ended with a lingering menthol finish. Indeed, it would be odd to just say that this was a Fernet Tennessee despite the reality of what the recipe looks like.

oaxacan standoff

1 1/2 oz El Bujo Mezcal
1/2 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Lustau Amontillado Sherry
1/4 oz Agave Syrup (1:1)
1/2 oz Lime Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass. Garnish with a grapefruit twist.
For my next drink at Tavern Road, I requested the Oaxacan Standoff from bartender Will Tomlinson; Will mentioned that this was bar manager Ryan McGrale's drink. Once mixed, it offered a grapefruit oil nose that led into a citrussy grape sip. The swallow then offered a smoky mezcal swallow with a nutty, orange-rhubarb finish.

blade of destiny

1 oz Amontillado Sherry
1 oz Cynar
1 oz Nardini Amaro

Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass with a large ice cube. Twist and orange peel over the top.

After Shojo, I made my way across the Channel to Tavern Road in Fort Point where I found a seat in front of bartender Will Thomlinson. For a first drink, I asked Will for the Blade of Destiny. The menu cites Christopher "Blade" Kotelly as the recipe creator; however, Will explained how it was a collaboration between Tavern Road bartender Bruno Prado and Blade, his guest. Blade was not feeling well that night, and he wanted something herbal to sooth his malaise. The combination of amontillado sherry and Nardini Amaro was one that worked well in Bruno's De La Vega, but that recipe lacked the garnish of the "double high five!" that I received when my Blade of Destiny was served.
The orange oils greeted the nose and provided some brightness for the caramel and hint of grape sip. The swallow was rather complex with chocolate from the Nardini Amaro, nutty grape from the sherry, and herbal vegetal notes from the Cynar.

kuula hina

The theme for this month's Mixology Monday (MxMo LXXXVI) was picked by Thiago of the BartendingNotes blog. The theme he chose was "Pineapple" which is perfect for the warming temperatures here even if that is not what Thiago is thinking as things cool down there in Brazil. Thiago elaborated on the theme with his description of, "Let's bring the king of fruits back! After being canned, mixed with all sorts of sugary liquids and blended into... some 80s dreadful cocktails, the pineapple needs more respect! Once a symbol of hospitality, the King of Fruits might be know misunderstood. One of the greatest non-citrus souring agents, used for crazy garnish ideas, infusions, old gum syrup flavoring, the pineapple is a fruit to be reckoned. Be in a tiki cocktails, an old school classic like the Algonquin, a crazy flavor pairing or just mixed in a delicious Verdita, get creative and make a cocktail using any part of this delicious, juicy fruit or share you favorite pineapple cocktail with us!"

At work, we have been going through a lot of pineapple juice with the Algonquin, the Tiki-esque Decatur Respite, and the Broken Shoe Shiner all appearing on the menu. Around a week and a half or so ago during a day shift, one of my bartender friends sat at my bar. She lamented that she would have to face her old academic institution for her graduate school classmate was defending her thesis that afternoon; therefore, she would need the drink to be rather stiff. My thoughts instantly went to Navy-strength Smith & Cross rum, and since the Nui Nui had been on my mind through something I had just read, I decided to do something Tiki with Don's Mix #2 (a/k/a Don's Spices) and to include sherry since my guest is a big sherry fanatic. Then it dawned on me to kill two birds with one stone and use some pineapple juice for Mixology Monday! I tried to use the sherry and pineapple juice as the only acid sources since sherry alone worked so well in the Endicott Cobbler. The feed back that I received was that it needed some citrus to brighten things up. In working out the recipe a few days later, I switched to our too-good-to-be-well-rum well rum, Privateer Silver made in Ipswich, MA, added some lime juice, and moved some of the proportions around. The end result was as follows:

Kuula Hina
• 1 1/2 oz Privateer Silver Rum
• 1/2 oz Lime Juice
• 1/2 oz Lustau Dry Amontillado Sherry
• 3/4 oz Pineapple Juice
• 3/4 oz Don's Mix #2 (1:1 vanilla syrup:allspice dram)
• 1 dash Angostura Bitters
Shake with ice and strain into a Hurricane glass. Fill with crushed ice and float 1/2 oz Cruzan Blackstrap Rum. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and add straws.

Since my guest used to study fruit flies, I looked up the god of flies, but Beelzebub did not seem to be all that fitting. Instead, I opted for the Hawaiian fish deity, Kuula, and paid tribute to the fisherman god's wife Hina as well. While the Nui Nui and the Pago Pago were my base inspirations for the Kuula Hina, I did pilfer the blackstrap rum float and pineapple wedge garnish ideas from Sam Gabrielli's Decatur Respite especially since they were handy nearby in the well and garnish tray.
Once mixed, the garnish and float donated a pineapple and coffee-like molasses rum aroma. Next, the pineapple and sherry's grape on the sip were brightened by the lime juice, and the swallow began with the rum and vanilla flavors and ended with allspice and pineapple notes.

So thank you to my bar guest who inspired me, Thiago of BartendingNotes for picking the theme and running this month's show, and the rest of the Mixology Monday participants for keeping the spirit of the event alive!

the jook sing

2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
1/4 oz Cynar (*)
1/4 oz Punt e Mes
1/4 oz Amaro Montenegro
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass (stemmed rocks glass) with a large ice cube.
(*) Note: the Punt e Mes, two amaros, and the bitters were added as a batched 3/4 oz. Nick believed that all but the Angostura Bitters were equal parts.

A few Thursdays ago, I ventured down to Shojo in Chinatown for Nick Korn had mentioned on social media that he was doing a guest shift there. I had been meaning to make it down there for a while especially after Shojo bartender Markus Yao appeared in the Improper Bostonian article along with ten others and me. For a start, I requested from Nick the A.B.C. that was subtitled the Jook Sing; Nick mentioned that this was Markus' recipe. A jook sing according to Wikipedia is "a Cantonese term for an overseas Chinese person who was born in a Western environment and/or a Chinese person who more readily or strongly identifies with Western culture than traditional Chinese culture." In addition, the term stems from a measuring cup made from bamboo; since bamboo is a series of compartmentalized units, liquids in the cup do not connect with the other end and are kept separate. Perhaps this was a nod that this bar inside the Chinese restaurant had put a Manhattan variation on the menu.
The Jook Sing began with a rye aroma with a hint of grape and herbal aromas. A rye malt sip shared some of the amaros' caramel, and the rye continued on into the swallow that ended with a smooth bitter-herbal finish. Overall, the drink reminded me of the Independent's Autumn Sweater for both felt like spirits forward Old Fashioned-Manhattan hybrids.

count camillo's derby

1 1/4 oz Beefeater Gin
1 1/4 oz Dolin Sweet Vermouth
1 1/4 oz Campari
8 leaf Mint

Muddle mint in Campari. Add rest of the ingredients and ice, and stir to mix and chill. Garnish with mint and add a straw.

Two weeks ago during Negroni Week, I wanted to tap into our rapidly growing mint jungle and put it towards some cocktail usage. With Negronis on my mind, I could not help but remember how well mint pairs with Campari in drinks like Matt Schrage's From the Hip or Stephen Shellenberger's Boa Vista. Perhaps something as simple as mintified Negroni in Julep form? For a name, I considered how the wild Camillo Negroni spent time as a cowboy as well as the mint and gin (not the better known whiskey one) Derby cocktail and dubbed it Count Camillo's Derby.
The bouquet of mint garnish contributed greatly to the drink's nose. A green herbal and grape sip led into a Campari, juniper, and mint swallow. My tasting notes comment "more than [just] a Negroni" for the mint shaped the drink away from the sharper notes of Campari into something a bit more fresh and herbal.