mischief

3/4 oz Del Maguey Mezcal Vida (Peloton de la Muerte)
3/4 oz Apricot Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
3/4 oz Lillet Blanc (Cocchi Americano)
3/4 oz Lemon Juice

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail coupe. Two Tuesdays ago, I ventured back to the Instagram of Satan's Whiskers in London and spotted the Mischief that they posted in 2023. Overall, it read like a mezcal version of the classic rum-based Culross, and it was very similar to the Almost Famous at the Franklin Café in 2015 which had the addition of orange bitters. Once prepared, the Mischief conjured a smoke and apricot aroma. Next, lemon, apricot, and pear notes on the sip were chased by smoky, vegetal, and apricot flavors on the swallow.

cocoyage

2 oz Bols Barrel-Aged Genever
1/2 oz Coco Lopez Coconut Cream
1/2 oz Cinnamon Syrup
1 Whole Egg

Shake one round without ice and one round with ice, strain into a Sour glass, and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg. Two Monday ago, I opened up my copy of the pre-Pandemic Eastern Standard bar bible and latched on to the Cocoyage. It was the bar's version of a drink vaguely described by Lafcadio Hearn in 1880 and communicated as a Genever, coconut water, and egg drink in Beachbum Berry's Potions of the Carribbean book. As for a time frame, a Yelp review in 2018 makes mention of the Cocoyage, and its coconut cream coupled with a whole egg reminded me of the bar's Root of All Evil. This Flip gave forth a woody spice and cinnamon bouquet to the nose. Next, a creamy and rich sip flowed into malty, coconut, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

sawyer

2 oz Beefeater Gin (Treehouse Percy's)
1/2 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Simple Syrup 1:1
14 dash Angostura Bitters
7 dash Peychaud's Bitters
7 dash Fee's:Regan's 50:50 Mix Orange Btters (4 dash Regan's, 3 dash Angostura Orange)

Shake with ice and strain into a single old fashioned glass.

Two Sundays ago, I still had in my mind one of the drinks in Punch's article on Gimlet variations called the Sawyer. The drink originally published in Brad Parsons' Bitters book in 2011 was crafted by Don Lee at Momofuku Ssäm Bar in Manhattan as a digestif nightcap. Overall, it reminded me of a gin and lime for rum and lemon with Fernet Don's Little Bitter that he created previously during his time at PDT, so I was game. The book and article describe how this bitters-laden Gimlet was inspired by wd-50 chef Wylie Dufresne who loves gin and how it was named after Wylie's daughter. Don elaborated on my Instagram post how, "Chef Wylie was a regular at PDT in the early days, and every week he would come in asking for a gin cocktail. A few years later after his baby was born, he lived a block away from Momofuku Ssäm Bar, and every night he would walk around the block with his daughter strapped to him to get her to sleep. He would walk by, and on slow nights, we would turn down the music so he could come in without waking the baby. This was a drink I made shortly after visiting Boston where I made the DLB (hence similar specs). Both were inspired by the Beta Cocktail book by Maks Pasuniak and Kirk Estopinal where they use Angostura and Peychaud's bitters by the ounce."While making the drink, I regret not dashing the bitters into the measuring cup to figure out the total volume used (but I did not regret the clean up of splatter that would have been necessary afterwards). In the glass, the Sawyer opened up with pine, allspice, and clove aromas from the gin and Angostura Bitters. Next, a rich, burnt sugar-noted sip flowed into clove, pine, and anise flavors on the swallow with lime and allspice elements on the finish.

mean old man

1 oz Lagavulin 16 Year Scotch (Caol Ila 12 Year)
1 oz Campari
1/2 oz Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth (Giacomo Speroni)
1/2 oz Zucca (Amaro Sfumato)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Saturdays ago, I looked to online recipe flashcards and came across the Mean Old Man at the Alley Light in Charlottesville, Virginia, from their Summer 2025 menu. The Islay Scotch, rabarbaro, and sweet vermouth trio made me think of the Caustic Negroni that I created on the fly at my guest shift at Backbar in 2017 but here with Campari in the mix too. In the glass, the Mean Old Man yelled forth a peat smoke, smoky herbal, and orange aroma. Next, grape and roast notes on the sip grumbled into smoky Scotch, bitter herbal, more smoke, and bitter orange flavors on the swallow.

ends of the earth

2 oz Añejo Tequila (Cimarron Reposado)
1/2 oz Giffard Crème de Banane (Tempus Fugit)
1/2 oz Amaro Nardini

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Fridays ago, I returned to the KindredCocktails database to make the Ends of the Earth by user Applejack from Chicago in 2019. Overall, the combination reminded me of the Away Colors with añejo tequila and Amaro Nardini in place of the añejo rum and Fernet. Once mixed, it greeted the nose with an orange, caramel, and banana aroma. Next, the amaro and liqueur's caramel notes filled the sip, and the drink progressed into vegetal, caramel, cooked banana, and herbal flavors on the swallow.

chicagovardier

1 oz Jeppson's Malört
1 oz Luxardo Amaro Abano
1 oz Sweet Vermouth (Giacomo Speroni)

Stir with ice and strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube. Two Thursdays prior, I spotted an interesting Malört recipe on the KindredCocktails database called the Chicagovardier. It was created and posted by Chicago home enthusiast RoscoeHour in 2025, and he was inspired by a love of the Malört-amaro pairing and took it in a Boulevardier direction by adding sweet vermouth. Malört has paired well with amaro before like Fernet in the Chicago Underground, Averna in the All That Jazz, and Cardamaro in the Continual Risk, and I had good luck matching Malört's intensity with sweet vermouth in the Ada Lovecraft. Once stirred and strained, the Chicagovardier gave forth a grapefruit, caramel, floral, and grape aroma. Next, chocolate, grape, and citrus notes on the sip ventured into dark herbal, grapefruit, pine, and cinnamon flavors on the swallow.

bordertown

1 oz Del Maguey Mezcal Vida (Peloton de la Muerte)
1/2 oz Campari
1/2 oz Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur
1 oz Cocchi Sweet Vermouth (Giacomo Speroni)
1 dash Smoked Bitters (Crude "Pooter" Smoke & Salt)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with an orange coin twist. Two Wednesdays ago, I was perusing my list of recipes that I had garnered from online flashcards, and I landed on the Bordertown at Alley Twenty Six in Durham, North Carolina, for their Negroni Week 2022 menu. The Bordertown had the mezcal, chile pepper liqueur, and Campari of Raines Law Room's Comanche Club, so I was intrigued. Once prepared, it presented an orange, roasted pepper-vegetal, and smoky aroma. Next, a grape-driven sip from the vermouth crossed over into smoky agave, spicy pepper, and bitter orange flavors on the swallow.

el chapo

2 oz Mezcal (Fosforo Ensemble)
1 oz Lime Juice
1 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur
1/2 oz Grenadine
1/2 oz Honey Syrup

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a pilsner glass (Tiki mug), and garnish with a piece of pineapple or a pineapple frond (chocolate mint sprigs). Two Tuesdays ago, I peered into Chad Austin's Everyone Has a F*cking Cocktail Book and spotted the El Chapo which was his first mezcal tropical drink. It was a different El Chapo from the one I made from the A Quick Drink: The Speed Rack Guide to Winning Cocktails for Any Mood book, and this one contained the honey, grenadine, lime, and spice core that I enjoyed in the South Seas Sleepwalker. In the mug with my alternative garnish, El Chapo proffered a mint bouquet to the nose. Next, lime, honey, and pineapple notes on the sip led into smoky mezcal, berry, vegetal, and pepper spice flavors on the swallow.

odd bedfellows

1 oz Fernet Branca
3/4 oz El Dorado 8 Year Rum (Hamilton 86° Demerara River)
1/2 oz Crème de Cacao (Bols)
1/4 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1 oz Coconut Cream (Coco Lopez)
1 1/2 oz Pineapple Juice

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a glass (Tiki mug), and top with crushed ice. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and/or mint sprigs (mint sprigs); add grated bitter chocolate. Two Mondays ago, I found a coconut cream recipe in Sother Teague's I'm Just Here for the Drinks book that I had skipped over previous called the Odd Bedfellows. Sother described it as a cross of a Piña Colada and a York Peppermint Patty. The combination reminded me of Hungry Mother's Fernet Colada (A/K/A No. 34) with the Fernet-cacao duo from my Fernet Alexander that I crafted in 2009 as part of the Anvil's 100 Drink List for the vague recipe of "spirit, crème de cacao, cream" and later in Lineage's Thin Mint Julep. Once mixed, the Odd Bedfellows awakened the senses with chocolate and mint aromas. Next, a creamy pineapple sip tossed and turned into coconut, chocolate, minty-menthol, and rum funk flavors on the swallow.