Blue Run Sling (Death & Co. Recipe)

This bittersweet Sling is a little less exotic than the Singapore Sling, keeping its ingredients more or less grounded in apple pie notes rather than citrus. And you don't see bourbon Slings everyday. I think of this as a fall cocktail for those who need to keep things on the light and refreshing side. And it's great: you don't feel bogged down with sweetness or pumpkin spice. 

I don't have Amaro Averna, but I know that it has a bitter orange peel flavor that I tried to replicate with a mix of Don Ciccio & Figili Ambrosia and my homemade Amer Picon (which has Ramazzotti with its orange flavors in it as well). The rest was made simply by combining ingredients and preparing the orange flag with the cherry target center. 

• 2 oz. bourbon
• 1/4 oz. Amaro Averna (Ambrosia and Amer Picon used)
• 3/4 oz. fuji apple juice
• 1/2 oz. lemon juice
• 3/4 oz. vanilla syrup
• 1 dash orange bitters (Hella used)
• 1 orange flag with cherry  and barrel-aged bitters dashed on it as garnish
  

Combine all liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a highball glass full of ice cubes. Garnish with the orange flag and dash bitters on it.

 

La Vina (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

The inventor of this drink says they like to use an amaro in a Manhattan to surprise guests. I'm not so surprised by this as I am with the use of a rich sherry like East India Solera. The idea for this drink may have begun as a Manhattan variation, but it became a lower ABV cocktail when amaro and sherry make up two thirds of the ingredients. 

To make Amaro Nonino, I use half my homemade Amer Picon, which is really loaded with orange and herbal notes and half Ambrosia cordial from Don Ciccio & Figili. Together you get something approximating the bittersweet Nonino. 

I have the rest of the ingredients as they are specified in the recipe, however, and the final product is pretty and very nice either before or after dinner.

• 1 oz. rye (Catoctin Creek used)
• 1 oz. Amaro Nonino (1/2 oz. each Amer Picon and Apertivo used)
• 1 oz. Lustau East India Solera Sherry
• 1 dash orange bitters (Hella used)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled coupe. 

202 Steps (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

I'm not sure about this cocktail's name. It certainly wasn't complicated, so the name can't refer to the recipe or difficulty. Maybe it has something to do with New York, or the distance from the bar to office or something very Death & Co. 

Tangerine is just different enough that you don't know what gives this drink its exotic flavor. Bourbon and citrus are fabulous together, so it is a wonder that this recipe hasn't been tried before except that tangerines are not typical bar ingredients, and I wonder about that when tasting this drink. Every bit of this is good. Now that I'm looking at the recipe, it is supposed to be served on the rocks, but I was in a coupe mood. I'm sure that having it one way or another wouldn't detract from the enjoyment. It is easy for any novice drinker to handle, but for those insecure guys who require a rocks glass to preserve their manhood, maybe this is a winner all around. 

• 1/4 tangerine peeled
• 2 oz. bourbon (Four Roses used)
• 1/2 oz. simple syrup
• 2 dashes orange bitters (Hella used)
• 1 orange twist

Muddle the tangerine in a shaker and add ice and the remaining liquid ingredients. Shake and strain into an Old Fashioned glass with a large ice cube and garnish with the orange twist.

Imperial March (Death & Co. Recipe)

This cocktail is nearly the same as a Martinez served in a "fancy Fizz glass." I think that this vintage glass will do. I made two small adjustments to the recipe: first because I am only using MurLarkey ImaGination gin as my dry gin right now and, second, I had to find substitutions to the fortified wine because I cant find Alvear Festival Pale Cream Sherry. I'm using Oloroso instead; and, while it is darker in color, it has the sweet nuttiness I'm looking for. In such large portions, it is important for the taste of the sherry to fit the style of the drink.

On tasting this Death & Co. recipe, I discovered that I was correct--this is a Martinez with sherry and a bit of grapefruit flavor. Not bad, and the change of glass does affect your impression of it, but orange (and grapefruit) bitterness blends well with sherry richness and all of it is lifted by Luxardo.

• 1 1/2 oz. Martin Miller's Westbourne Strength gin (MurLarkey ImaGination used)
• 1 oz Alvear Festival Pale Cream Sherry (Faraon Olorso used)
• 3/4 oz. Cocchi Americano
• 1 tsp Luxardo maraschino liqeur
• 1 dash orange bitters (Hella used)
• 1 grapefruit twist garnish

Combine liquid ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into the fancy Fizz glass and twist a grapefruit zest over the glass and drop it in. 

 

Hadley's Tears (Death & Co. Recipe)

I can't say that I've seen a lot of genever cocktails with dark rum and Galliano. The thing is, I've pretty much drawn the line just after rum-based Sazeracs and didn't consider what a great maritime spirit genever is and just how much it can influence a classic cocktail. 

Drinks of this proportion are all about the herbal presence of the absinthe and citrus bitters. Bols Barrel Aged Genever doesn't fight this trend with juniper and malty notes that melt right into the well aged rum. The recipe calls for Jamaican rum, and George Bowman's is a blend of Caribbean rums that hews closely to Appleton or Pusser's. I like featuring a local spirit as often as I can on this blog, so that is why its here.

But a Sazerac needs sugar. You get that from Galliano and simple syrup. More vanilla and anise isn't going to detract from the overall experience. Galliano and aromatic bitters just takes this drink closer to Itailian wedding cookies and away from carrot cake. 

• 1 oz. Appleton Estate rum (George Bowman's used)
• 1 oz. Bols Genever (Barrel Aged genever used)
• 1 tsp. Galliano
• 1/2 tsp. absinthe (Ricard used)
• 1 dash aromatic bitters (Hella used)
• 1 orange twist

Stir all ingredients over ice, then strain into a double rocks glass over 1 large ice cube. Garnish with the orange twist. 

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Sure Shot (Death & Co. Recipe)

This is a winner of a recipe, for sure. Very few stirred cocktails go with chili infusions. This one is nice and smokey and plays up the rich, whiskey-like flavors of old Tom and genever. I've never infused chilis in sweet vermouth before, and I have to say it goes in faster than you expect. Only a few hours are necessary to make the infusion. It also tastes great, like adding smoke and heat to your bittersweet  vermouth. Why wouldn't this be great?

Gallian and orange bitters have their own role to play in Sure Shot. I like how the vanilla and anise of Galliano are more like spice additions than sweeteners. Galliano also adds a richness to the texture to support the vermouth. This is a hefty drink and orange bitters suggestion of baking spices makes it even that much more rounded. 

• 1 1/2 oz. Old Tom gin (Vitae used)
• 1/2 oz. Bols Genever (Bols barrel aged genever used)
• 3/4 oz. ancho chile-infused Dolin rouge vermouth
• 1 tsp Galliano
• 1 tsp. demerara syrup
• 1 dash orange bitters (Hella used)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled coupe. 

 

Vejk Sling (Death & Co. Recipe)

Slings are popular, tasty and easy to make. They are some of the oldest cocktails in history, and yet they are not going away anytime soon. Basically, you need only a base spirit, some juice and soda, and a dash of a flavorful liqueur or a garnish usually helps distinguish one sling from another.

This Sling is mostly distinguished by scotch. It needs little else to make it interesting, however Dolin blanc and orange bitters send it in an appropriately fruity direction. Furthermore, a chamomile infusion in the Dolin blanc adds earthiness and apple-like notes

• 2 oz. Compass Box Asyla scotch (Spyburn 10-year-old used)
• 1 oz. chamomile-infused Dolin blanc vermouth
• 3/4 oz. simple syrup
• 1/2 oz. lemon juice
• 1 dash Bittermen's orange bitters (Hella used)
• club soda
• lemon twist

Combine all ingredients except soda in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled Collins glass full of fresh ice. Top with soda and twist the lemon zest over the drink and drop it in. 

 

Enemy Lines

 

So there's the Allies cocktail with kummel and gin, and now there's Enemy Lines. This is a fun way to combine tequila and aquavit in a similar format--rich and strong with no sugar. The way it works is bitters and more bitters and a little lemon zest give this drink body where normally there would be all spirits. 

Furthermore, it is unlikely that the reposado tequila and aquavit combo would work at all, except that both are herbaceous and funky. It is really a testament to the bonding power of bitters--in high quantity--to make this happen. Is it good? Better than you'd think, and possibly one of the best all spirits cocktails involving tequila. 

• 1 1/2oz. reposado tequila (El Jimador used)
• 3/4 oz. aquavit (homemade akvavit used)
•  4 dashes Peychauds bitters
• 1 dash aromatic bitters (Hella used)
  
• lemon twist 

Combine all ingredients except lemon twist in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into an Old Fashioned glass. Twist lemon zest over the drink and discard.

Saramago (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

Sometimes a cocktail is designed to invite the senses and is so well-balanced that it seduces you completely. That is what happens with this drink, a variation on the Tequila Martini. 

My issue with the Tequila Martini is that it is often too dry, too forceful to have as your first cocktail. Saramago gets you over that hump with St. Germain to sweeten and add floral essences. Dolin blanc and tequila makes for a rounder Martini than the extra dry vermouth. It gives more of a grape flavor that plays well with the herbal notes of tequila. Finally, there's just a hint of smoke from the mezcal rinse that signals the deeper pleasures to come.

• Del Maguey Vida Mezcal rinse
  
• 2 oz blanco tequila (Sauza 100% blue agave blanco used)
• 3/4 oz. Dolin blanc
• 1/2 oz. St-Germain
• 1 dash orange bitters (Hella used)
• grapefruit twist

Rinse a coupe with mezcal and dump. Stir the remaining ingredients on ice and strain into the coupe. Twist a grapefruit zest over the drink and drop it in. 

Legend (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

Going through the Death & Co. stirred brandy cocktail chapter section, I realized they have many drinks that follow this same format: brandy and rum, and bitter aperitifs and sweet fortified wines, served in a coupe with no garnish. 

And this is truly one of the best of them. I love this one because it is light and balanced, yet contains some really deep flavors. No wonder it's called Legend. In something like this, small differences can mean noticeable changes, so Legend may be one to try again with different rums, amari, or bitters. I went with aromatic bitters by Hella (not Bitter Truth) and Angostura. And I don't have Appleton estate rum or Amontillado, but I do have Caribbean rum and solera reserve from Lustau. Finally, I have a local amaro by Don Ciccio and Figili that has to stand in for Amaro Nonino. It doesn't quite cut it, so I used a splash of my Amer Picon to give it the bitter orange peel notes of Nonino.

• 2 oz. cognac (Martell single distillery used)
• 1/2 oz. Appleton Estate V/X rum (George Bowman used)
• 3/4 oz. Lustau Amontillado (Lustau East India Solera sherry used)
• 1/2 oz. Amaro Nonino (blend of Ambrosia and Amer Picon used)
• 1 dash Bitter Truth aromatic bitters (Hella used)
• 1 dash Angostura bitters

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled coupe. 

Lobby Cocktail

 

I got this fun and easy recipe off of Kindred Cocktails, a website similar to mine with a large cocktail recipe database. If you haven't noticed, lately I've been trolling the internet looking for modern recipes or twists on classics that I've not tried yet. There is a lot out there, but I've just about exhausted the classics and am looking for things to do with more unusual spirits. Today that was my homemade Mandarine Napoleon recipe.

So the Lobby cocktail seems to take its name from other hotel-themed cocktails like the Grand Hotel or Hotel Plaza. But really I found the experience of the Lobby Cocktail similar to the KGB, which is kirsch, gin and apricot brandy. It's that kind of heavy, all high-proof spirits experience that doesn't let up, or at least not at first, that this drink reminded me of. And it isn't surprising. Mandarine Napoleon is the only sweet spirit in here, like apricot brandy in the KGB, and that barely provides room for the other ingredients. Unlike other Hotel cocktails, there's no aromatized wine like sweet vermouth to thin out the high-proof stuff, so I recommend using wet ice or going with a splash of water in your mixing glass. 

Something else of note: this cocktail calls for Galliano (not pictured) and because I didn't have it, I couldn't put it in the photo. I do have a pretty reliable recipe to substitute for Galliano in a pinch. It wont do for Galliano drinks like the Harvey Wallbanger, but when all you need is a quarter of an ounce, then I suggest combining sweet 3 parts anisette (or anisette with a drop of sugar syrup) and 1 part vanilla vodka. This gets the herbal and vanilla notes of Galliano across when color and texture would otherwise be lost among other ingredients. For this cocktail, I used sweet Aguardiente as the anisette, not a pastis like Ricard or absinthe substitute. Those are playing a different ballgame than Galliano, and Aguardiente has the sweet herbal flavors (minus the vanilla) that I was looking for.

• 2 oz. gin (Citadelle used)
• 1/4 oz. Galliano (a mixture of 3 parts Aguardiente and 1 part vanilla vodka used)
• 1/4 oz. Mandarine Napoleon
• 1 dash orange bitters
• lemon zest twist

Combine liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Twist lemon zest over the glass and drop it in. 

A Few Of My Favorite Things

 

This isn't my recipe, though these are a few of my favorite things, that's for sure. Difford's Guide says that a British bartender Dale Bebington invented this, and I have to say it displays superior taste.

Last weekend it snowed in Virginia, and this recipe really called to me. Even the name from the Sound Of Music felt especially appropriate for winter. I had all the things for the recipe, essentially. Genepy is alpine spirit along the same lines as Chartreuse, it is even French, and I believe it comes from the many unsuccessful attempts to replicate Chartreuse back during a time when it was in short supply.

Other ingredients include Martel cognac, which was specified in the recipe as well as mildly sweet Amontillado sherry. Instead of Aperol, I have Ambrosia by Don Ciccio & Figili, amari makers in the U.S. capital. Lastly, a dash of Angostura bitters and orange bitters. It's like a stirred pie!

• 1/3 oz. Martell cognac
• 1/3 PX sherry Amontillado used
• 1/3 Aperol or red sweet Italian amaro (Ambrosia used)
• 1/6 green Chartreuse (Dolin Genepy used)
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• 1 dash Hella orange bitters
• lemon zest twist
  

Combine all liquid ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled Old Fashioned glass full of fresh ice. Twist lemon over the glass and drop it in.

Je Suis l'Amour (Difford's Guide Recipe)

 

This is a cocktail that tastes rich but feels light: Cognac, ginger brandy and sweet vermouth give a ton of flavor up front. This is that rich stone fruit and herbal notes of the spirits. If I had chocolate bitters (which I understand to be a major part of the drink as the name suggests) I would have a drink with a chocolaty depth. As it was, I had Hella orange bitters with its baking spice notes. And that still does the trick for such a spicy drink in with ginger dominates. 

But when the sip finishes, you get such a light lift from all the heavy sensations. Firstly the grapefruit juice ensures that the body of the liquid itself is light. Your final impression is a citrus fruit cocktail (grapefruit often being associated with with ginger and cognac warmth. It is an expression of love, and very French at that.

• 1 1/2 oz cognac (Martell single distillery used)
• 2/3 rich sweet vermouth (Cocchi di Torino used)
• 1/2 oz. ginger liqueur (homemade ginger brandy used)
• 1/2 oz. grapefruit juice
  
• 2 dashes chocolate bitters (Hella orange bitters used)
• orange zest

Combine all liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Stir and Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Squeeze the orange zest over the glass and lay it on the rim.

Angel's Advocate

 

 

 

Angel's Advocate is a play on words because this drink is made with a little advocaat. Advocaat is a Dutch egg liqueur that I recently learned to make from this Youtube video. The recipe essentially calls for mixing sugar, brandy and egg whites with some vanilla beans. Then it is heated and allowed to cook down briefly before bottling.

The advocaat spirit is thick, like a strong eggnog without the nutmeg. (It actually makes an excellent bottled starter for eggnog, just add milk and nutmeg.) The benefit of this spirit is the ability to add a protein-rich texture without needing raw eggs handy--it is refrigerator stable for a few weeks, so the party can last. In large doses in cocktails, you get dessert drinks, but smaller portions make for creamy textures without adding milk or raw eggs. It also can mix with citrus without clotting the way dairy does. A little goes a long way in that instance, and you will find it makes a gin drink like the Angel's Advocate cloudy and soft with a vanilla scent.

(Note: "Advocaat" is also the word for lawyer in Scandinavian countries, so this drink is a triple play on words.) 

• 1 1/2 oz. dry gin (homemade used)
• 1/6 oz. advocaat (homemade used)
• 1/2 oz. vanilla syrup (simple with vanilla extract used)
• 2/3 oz. lemon juice
• 1 dash cardamon bitters (Hella aromatic bitters used)
• orange zest laid in a cross shape
  

Combine all liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and double strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Lay the orange zest pieces on the drink surface in the shape of a cross.

Shiedam Manhattan (Original Recipe)

 If you get Schiedam gin from the Netherlands or if you can make it yourself, you will enjoy this Manhattan recipe with soft malt and juniper notes for the cooler months. It is nearly the same as any Manhattan recipe out there that uses sweet vermouth, but it substitutes Schiedam gin (A.K.A. my homemade bathtub gin) for whiskey. 

I rather like the spiciness of this cocktail: it has something for both the whiskey drinker and the classic Prohibition-style gin drinker. It's fun and makes your usual Manhattan interesting.

• 2-3 oz. Schiedam gin or low-juniper bathtub gin
• 1/2 oz. sweet vermouth (Cocchi di Torino used)
• several dashes orange bitters (Hella used)
• maraschino cherry garnish

Combine liquid ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with cherry. 

Flavio's Special

As long as this drink was going to take a deep dive into orange flavors, I felt it was appropriate to complete the journey--by substituting MurLarkey's orange whiskey for the regular blended stuff. Flavio's Special already has orange liqueur and bitters, and I was correct that the taste from the whiskey, particularly the vanilla notes, could be enhanced by this local Virginia whiskey steeped in orange peels and vanilla.

Now the only question is who is Flavio? There are several restaurants and even a food critic and chef who share the same name, but I'm not sure that the title can be traced back to any one individual person or place. Names like these are lost to time, a particular bartender, guest or owner of an establishment who comes up with a Manhattan Variation that is a hit for a short while. What is more likely is that the name is intended to evoke an Italian theme that fits a restaurant, and the orange flavor is an echo of common Italian aperitifs. We may never know the full story, but we don't have to. Make this drink with orange whiskey or a mild blended whiskey and enjoy the spice and orange flavors rolling around your tongue.

One other thing of note: the recipe calls for Grand Marnier (which is French) but I made an equally acceptable substitute of Royal Combier, a competing orange cognac liqueur. With all of these substitutions, I have come a long way from the original recipe, but I think it is an improvement on a recipe that otherwise hews too closely to a standard Manhattan. 

• 1 1/2 oz. blended whiskey (MurLarkey orange whisky used)
• 1/2 oz. sweet vermouth (Cocchi Dopo Teatro used)
• 1/2 oz. Grand Marnier (Royal Combier used)
• dash orange bitters (Hella used)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Jagermeister

This is not the German spirit that we grew up taking "dare" shots of at dive bars, but it is close. This vodka cocktail goes for sour and earthy flavors just like the famed Jagermeister, which means master of the hunt. That might lend insight into the green color scheme of this recipe.

Kummel and Jager (as it is called) are similar Germanic sweet and herbal infusions. Jagermeister has a lot more clove and licorice root and a number of ingredients that are secrets to all except a small few who work for the distillers. My addition to the cocktail recipe is intended to balance the brightness, a heavy dash of clove and spice aromatic bitters by Hella.

• 1 1/2 oz. vodka (Smirnoff #57)
• 1/2 oz. kummel (homemade recipe used)
• 1/2 oz. lime juice 
• lime twist
• dash aromatic bitters (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Twist a lime peel over the glass and drop it in.

George V Cocktail

A kingly cocktail requires royal ingredients--I mean Lillet and Royal Combier. This cocktail fits well within the classic French gin cocktails using wine and cognac-based spirits. Orange and spice rule here. Lillet blanc is an orange bitter and fortified wine. Royal Combier has north African spices and oranges in its cognac and eau de vie blend. Finally, orange bitters punch up the baking spices like clove and allspice and bring the orange flavor to the front.

• 1 1/2 oz. gin (MurLarkey ImaGination used)
• 1 tsp. oz. Cointreau (Royal Combier used and recommended)
• 1 oz. Lillet Blanc
• several dashes orange bitters (Hella used)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

La Cote Basque Cocktail

Forbidden Fruit, like Amer Picon, is a French spirit that is no longer in production. I'm trying to do as many drinks with my homemade version as I can while I have some left.

That brings me to this rich cocktail. I stayed with the drier gin, MurLarkey ImaGination, because I knew that Forbidden Fruit is rich with honey and cognac. There is also an unusual bitterness of oranges and the pomelos and citrus peels in the Forbidden Fruit.

• 1 1/2 oz. gin (MurLarkey ImaGination used)
• 1/2 oz. Forbidden Fruit (Homemade version used)
• 1/2 oz. triple sec (Leroux used)
• several dashes orange bitters (Hella used)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Pumpkin Spice Old Fashioned (Original Recipe)

To make this drink, I made a basic PSL syrup with turbinado sugar and spices. This was a quick solution to flavoring the syrup of a classic cocktail. The other special touch for this fall drink was the pumpkin-shaped orange zest. I'll deal with the instructions for these first.

Pumpkin spice is really a combination of lots of spices from the tropical regions of the world. Combine in a saucepan 5 allspice berries, 5 cloves, 5 cardamom pods, 12 anise seeds, and a half cup of dark sugar like turbinado or demerara. Add 1/4 cup of water and stir on medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Once the mixture comes to a boil, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool. (I added 1 tsp. MurLarkey cinnamon whiskey because it adds flavor and preserves the syrup.

To make the pumpkin-shaped garnish, simply use a peeler to cut a broad zest from a large naval orange. Be careful not to get any pith--that is a sign you cut the peel too deeply. Use a sharp knife to cut the shape of the pumpkin from the widest part of the zest. (using a pattern cut from card stock may be helpful for those lacking artistic skills.) Cut out a Jack-O-Lantern face of your desire and save for the cocktail.

• 2 oz. whiskey (MurLarkey Heritage used)
• 1 tsp. basic PSL syrup
• 1 dash aromatic bitters (Hella used)
• pumpkin-shaped zest garnish

Combine all ingredients except garnish in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain over large ice cubes in a chilled Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with the orange zest.