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. 

 

Mucho Picchu (Death & Co.)

 

This cocktail name sounds like a bar inside joke--a pun on Machu Picchu. I don't get the reference, but it's ingredients are sound, as are most of the champagne cocktails in the Death & Co. recipe book. Unusual for a champagne cocktail, the juice is grapefruit and there are no bitters other than the maraschino, which is more sweet than bitter. The grapefruit twist is both attractive and aromatic with the bubbles coming up all around. 

This is one of the better ways to use Pisco (a grape spirit itself) by putting it in a sparkling wine. The number of ingredients is small and easy to prepare. All that is required is an open bottle of Chandon. 

• 1 1/2 oz. pisco (Capel used)
• 1/4 oz. Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 1/2 oz. grapefruit juice
• 1/2 oz. simple syrup
• dry champagne (Chandon used)
• grapefruit twist garnish

Combine all liquid ingredients except champagne in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled champagne flute and top with champagne. Twist grapefruit zest over the drink and drop it in. 

Yeoman Warder (Death & Co. Recipe)

A yeoman was a master woodsman, leader of the hunt and a skilled fighter with a yew bow. Picture Robin Hood in green garb standing around in the woods. With all the herbaceous flavors going on in this cocktail, you can taste that medieval trope right in the glass.

I picked up a bottle of Cynar 70-proof to make this drink, and I find that this new release of Cynar is even more flavorful than the original artichoke amaro. I don't know if that is because more flavor can be packed into an infusion of botanicals when the proof is higher, or it is just a more intense formulation. Either way, a little Cynar 70-proof goes a long way.

In addition to the vegetable notes of artichoke in the Cynar, I used my homemade gin that has asparagus as one of the botanicals. You notice it, but not as much as the spice and bitterness. Overall I'd say this drink is intense with all flavors dialed up to the max. Despite that, sweet and bitter, tart and spice, are all balanced and contribute to an enjoyable sip.

• 2 oz. dry gin (homemade gin with asparagus botanical used)
• 3/4 oz. Dolin dry vermouth
• 1/4 oz. Cynar (70-proof used)
• 1/4 oz. Luxardo maraschino 

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

 

Pete's Word

 

A simple and amazing twist on a the classic Last Word with scotch and Dolin Genepy in place of gin and Luxardo maraschino liqueur. Definitely try this with Laphroaig for the smokey peat of the Islay scotch. This flavor is similar to the smoke from mezcal that goes so well with lime juice. It's a great combination, and Luxardo just makes the whole thing work, tying together peat, alpine spice and a highly acidic fruit juice into one harmonious cocktail. You'd think Pete's Word is one of the cannon originals of the classic cocktails.

• 3/4 oz Laphroaig single malt
• 3/4 oz. Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
• 3/4 oz. Dolin Genepy
• 3/4 ozlime juice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

AKA Cobbler (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

This is a beautiful cocktail, as Cobblers often are. Looking at the ingredients this is as much a sherry cobbler with a spicy tequila shot thrown in. It uses the juice and acidity of the strawberry to give the right balance to the other sweet and spicy ingredients. My limited success this time around (it was hard to appreciate) is probably due to the fact that strawberry season hasn't hit its stride yet. Riper berries will undoubtedly make for a better taste.

But a Cobbler is usually a winter cocktail, containing lots of ingredients designed to satisfy a sweet tooth and warm you up despite that it is served on ice. So we have Lustau East India Solera Sherry and maraschino liqueur giving liquored fruit notes, some muddled lemon twists for zestiness, and blanco tequila, a portion of which is infused with jalapeno heat. 

I'm still trying to place where this cocktail best fits in. Maybe at Death & Co. on a cold day. It's not poolside sipping or a beach drink, though. 

• 1 tsp simple syrup
• 1 tsp Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 2 lemon twists
• 1 strawberry
• 1 white sugar cube
• 1 1/2 oz. blanco tequila (Sauza 100% blue agave used)
•  1/2 oz. jalapeno-infused blanco tequila (Sauza blanco infused with jalapenos used)
• 1/2 oz. Lustau East India Solera Sherry
• 1/2 strawberry garnish

Muddle the simple syrup, maraschino liqueur, lemon twists, strawberry and sugar cube in a shaker tin. Add tequilas and sherry and whip (shake with a few pieces of crushed ice, just until the ingredients are incorporated. Dump into a double rocks glass and top with crushed ice. Garnish with the half strawberry. 

Martica (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

This is one of those no garnish needed, all-booze drinks that Death & Co. does to show off their most intensely flavored liquors. This one takes the richness of Jamaican rum and the dry but deep taste of cognac and balances them with sharp maraschino and exotic bitters. 

These kinds of cocktails were part of the revival movement in the early 2000. Once upon a time, we were just discovering how to actually use bitters to tie flavors together, and we learned that Luxardo maraschino is indespensable. It's the duct tape of cocktails. This drink is so straight forward--and good, definitely good--that it doesn't need water or juice and can still be satisfyingly complex.

• 1 oz. cognac (Martell single distillery used)
• 1 oz. Appleton V/X rum (George Bowman used)
• 3/4 bitter Italian sweet vermouth (Cocchi di Torino used)
• 1/4 oz. Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 1 dash Angostura bitters

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

St. Columb's Rill (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

This is an herbal and citrusy all-liquor cocktail with Irish whiskey from Death & Co. It is a simple idea that is surprisingly balanced and requires no bitters or garnish to hold it together. That is because the herbal notes and even the citrus come from the botanicals in the Dolin blanc and Green Chartreuse (Dolin Genepy pictured). 

It is tempting to add more Green Chartreuse to give the cocktail the emerald color of may Irish-themed drinks making the rounds this time of year. That would be a mistake that would upset the delicate balance. Dolin Genepy, which I have substituted for Chartreuse, is similar in flavor but lacks the intensity of the Chartreuse's green color. Ordinarily, I wouldn't make a substitution like this if the amount were as much as an ounce because of this effect, but here the color change, and really the difference in flavor, are negligible. 

• 2 oz. Bushmills Irish whiskey (Slane used)
• 3/4 oz. Dolin blanc vermouth
• 1/4 oz. Green Chartreuse (Dolin Genepy used)
• 1/4 oz. Luxrdo maraschino liqueur

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

Gonzalez (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

This drink is named after  Jessica Gonzalez, the first female bartender at Death & Co. She must have like the Martinez, because that is what this drink is doing, essentially. And it's great, its easy, it's so approachable, I had to make it with my own homemade gin.

• 2 oz. dry gin (homemade used)
• 3/4 oz. Punt e Mes (Cocchi di Torino used)
• 3/4 Luxardo maraschino
• 2 dashes aromatic bitters (Hella used)

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

After Hours (Recipe by Satvik Ahuja)

 

I was in the mood for kummel on a gray day last weekend and stumbled on this recipe on Difford's Guide. The drink makes me think of Covenant's song "After Hours" with its distorted electronic hum, slow beats and creepy stalker lyrics. And it was designed as an after dinner drink, but I found it much closer to an Aviation without the lemon juice. In fact, citrus notes are hinted at here, but omitted entirely for a spirits-forward punch sweetened by maraschino and honey in the kummel.

I'm working with my homemade kummel here, which is the same recipe as whatever akvavit I have on hand plus added honey syrup. I only make as much as I need on any particular day because it is a specialty ingredient. I also am having fun with the French gin, Citadelle. You could certainly go with a heavier gin, like an old tom or Ransom and make this a dessert drink. I felt that while Citadelle is a light, dry gin, it also has the heft of 18 botanicals that give it more weight in the nose than many American gins, especially after mixing them with Luxardo maraschino.

Difford's Guide is a good place to find new inventions like this, and many of the cocktails call for chilled water as an option. This is the first time I took that option, and I feel like it was a good call. The flavors are very packed in this cocktail and water gave them room to express. 

• 1 1/2 oz. dry gin (Citadelle used)
• 1/3 oz. kummel (homemade used)
• 1/3 oz. maraschino liqueur
• 1 dash orange bitters
• 1/3 chilled water
• maraschino cherry (Bada Bing used)

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

Crazy Crossing

 

This beauty of a cocktail is intentionally French. It calls for Dubonnet rouge, which is an aromatized wine from Paris, but having none, I intentionally went with another French aromatized wine that fits the bill--Byrrh.

I've mixed with Byrrh before and found it a little softer than Dubonnet, and a little less fruity. All the fuss about it being made with many kinds of quinine botanicals seems overplayed. Byrrh is mild and floral and adds a lovely rouge color as well.

This is the first time I've mixed with Citadelle gin from France, and I have to say it has such a fresh botanical scent and flavor. Eighteen botanicals puts it in league with the Botonist from Scotland or Glendalough gin from Ireland, and it has that same kind of freshness I associate with the UK gins. I don't know if Citadelle is unfiltered, but I would assume that its brightness comes from not filtering away the brightest juniper and citrus notes.

The cocktail? This is a very French version of a Martinez. An impressive gin and several kinds of sweet and dry vermouth as well as Mandarine Napoleon to give it rich cognac and spiced mandarin orange notes instead of using orange bitters. In fact, it is a Martinez down to the maraschino liqueur, which I love.

• 1 1/2 oz. gin (Citadelle used)
• 3/4 oz. Dubonnet rouge (Byrrh used)
  
• 3/4 oz. dry vermouth (Dolin used)
• 1/3 oz. maraschino liqueur (Luxardo used)
• 1/12 Mandarine Napoleon (homemade used)
• maraschino cherry (Bada Bing used)

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

Greta Garbo (Difford's Guide Recipe)

There's a few cocktails out there dedicated to actress Greta Garbo. This one is the first I've seen that doesn't use Swedish punsch. It is based on the Daiquiri, with hints of almond and anise, so it has a very classical profile. The lack of Swedish punsch makes me think that this Greta Garbo is something the actress might have enjoyed, rather than just being a gimic to sell Swedish punsch.

Difford's Guide does not supply any origin story or apocryphal anecdote about the creation of this cocktail other than to link it with Garbo and mention that it is one of many. 

I like what anise and the suggestive anise star garnish does to a classic Daiquiri's flavor. There is something Parisian or continental about this cocktail that has the feel of 1920s films. The presentation is beautiful and the flavors perfectly balanced. You will want to have more than one of these.

• 1 1/2 oz. light rum (Mt. Defiance used)
• 1/4 oz. maraschino liqueur
• 1/2 oz. sugar syrup
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1/6 oz. Pernod (Ricard used)
• anise star garnish

Combine liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the anise star. 

 

Forbidden Daiquiri (Original Recipe)

 

Drinkers of Hemingway Daiquiris love how grapefruit juice and maraschino liqueur really change the direction of the classic Caribbean cocktail. But what if you don't have grapefruit? The answer lies in Forbidden Fruit, a liqueur that was invented to preserve grapefruit flavor in cognac.

Back in the days before air transportation, Europeans couldn't always get fresh grapefruit juice. Forbidden Fruit was a popular French liqueur right up until modern canning facilities were able to pump out canned juices. By the time grapefruit were being farmed in the U.S. and flown around the world, Forbidden Fruit had already disappeared from bars. 

This Daiquiri hearkens back to the time when fresh fruit and such luxuries as tropical drinks were in short supply but good spirits were not. It was almost like the Daiquiri was "forbidden," not by any kind of decree but by scarcity of ingredients. 

• 1 1/2 oz. light rum (Mt. Defiance used)
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1/2 oz. Forbidden Fruit liqueur (homemade used) 
• 1/2 tsp. maraschino liqueur
• 1/2 oz. sugar syrup
  

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Golfe Juan

 

I'm breaking out the French-themed drinks, even though not all ingredients are French in and of themselves. Golfe-Juan is a seaside resort on France's Côte d'Azur. The place has an air of tropical paradise to it with all the trappings of French tourist sites. The cocktail blends these two attitudes perfectly with European liqueurs of the golden age of cocktails and pineapple and lemon juice.

Altogether, you can possibly have as many as three European nationalities represented in one touristy cocktail: French brandy, Italian maraschino liqueur, and German kirschwasser. Don't use an American sweet kirsch. It tastes like cherry candy and you already have maraschino for that. A true kirsch, however will easily float on this drink, kicking up the alcoholic nose and giving the whole drink the boozy beachside cafe feel you are looking for.

• 1 1/2 oz. brandy (Korbel used but use cognac to make it more French)
• 1/2 oz. maraschino liqueur like Luxardo
• 1 oz. pineapple juice
• 1/2 oz. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. kirsch float (Kammer Kirsch used)

Combine all ingredients except for kirsch in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Use a bar spoon to float the kirsch on top of the drink.

Morning Dip

 

In keeping with the "Morning" series of strong cocktails with orange juice, this tropical treat is on the spicy side. In this case it is rum and a little bit of juice. The rest is in the liqueurs: maraschino like the Morning Cocktail with falernum in place of the Pernod for spiciness. 

My falernum recipe has a little star anise, cinnamon, allspice and ginger; it's completely tropical tasting. I used brown sugar in this batch, so it is extra rich with molasses sweetness. Pusser's navy rum will have to do for the very specific Puerto Rico gold that the recipe specifies. The difference between Guyana and Puerto Rico is kinda large, but I'm over it. This old recipe I'm using dates from a time where Puerto Rico was the only place you could get rum from in the U.S., and the "gold" lable really means that it is supposed to have more of an aged flavor. Pusser's accomplishes this and then some. 

• 1 1/2 oz. Puerto Rican gold rum (Pussar's used)
• 1 tsp. maraschino liqueur  
• 1 tsp. orange juice
• 1 tsp. sugar or falernum (homemade falernum used)

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Tom Neuberger's Toddy

Contrary to popular belief, a Toddy is not a hot drink (that's the Hot Toddy). It is actually mixture of spirits, water, honey and lemon that is used as a curative. Tom Neuberger's Toddy is the kind of cure you need on a hot day.

My first inclination was that adding equal parts spirits and water to a recipe will create something that tastes watered down, and that does happen to an extent. But that is just what you need when looking for a refreshing rocks sipper. All spirits and ice don't go over well when you are sipping in the sun, at least not for very long.

Another thing to consider is making any cold drink with honey means you get a lump of honey that doesn't dissolve into the cocktail like it does when the water is hot. It actually takes a lot of work and creates too much variation when mixing multiple drinks. Bartenders resort to a half-honey/ half-hot water solution that further dilutes the cocktail. You can do that or you can just use MurLarkey honey whiskey.

Either option is good. I enjoyed how much honey presence MurLarkey gave the drink without adding too much sweetness. There's only a twist of lemon in the drink, so it isn't so much a question of balance as it is about having honey represented alongside cinnamon, lemon and whiskey.

• 1 tsp. honey (or 1/2 oz. MurLarkey Honey whiskey)
• 2 oz. water
• 2 oz. blended whiskey (Seagram's 7 used)
• dash maraschino liqueur
• lemon twist
• cinnamon stick

 If using honey, add honey and water to a chilled Old Fashioned glass and stir until the honey dissolves. (For better results try a 1:1 ratio of honey and hot water syrup plus the 2 oz. of cold water.) If you have honey whiskey skip the first step and use the honey whiskey. Add blended whiskey and maraschino liqueur to the glass and fill with several ice cubes. Stir well before twisting the lemon peel over the drink and dropping it in. Garnish with the cinnamon stick. 

Orly Bird

This cocktail is named after Paris' famous Orly airport or the aircraft that land there. It is also classically Franco-American in that it resembles a Manhattan with just hints of spirits representing the Paris spirit scene in the 1900s. For the traditional Manhattan drinker, I recommend it over more bitter anise flavored cocktails with the same ingredients. The Orly Bird is milder and more whiskey-forward than the Waldorf or the Hearn's Cocktail, which use a higher proportion of Pernod.

Rather than use a rich cherry brandy--or cherry flavored brandy of dubious make--I decided that this cocktail was really calling for the dry maraschino flavor of Luxardo. The results proved me correct. You will not notice the flavoring effect of a few dashes of cherry brandy or Herring like you do a similar amount of Luxardo maraschino. In doing this, I made something classic and close to the whiskey version of the Martinez.

• 1 1/2 oz. blended whiskey (MurLarkey Heritage used)
• 1 tbsp. sweet vermouth (Cocchi Dopo Teatro used)
• several dashes cherry brandy (Luxardo used)
• several dashes Pernod

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

Brooklyn Cocktail (Revisited with Homemade Amer Picon)

Manhattan has it's signature cocktail with rye. Brooklyn's is less well known, perhaps because it is more complicated and one of its ingredients has all but gone extinct. I've made this cocktail before with Catoctin Creek rye, but I used Picon Biere instead of Amer Picon--the hard to find ingredient. This time I did it with my homemade Amer Picon from a recipe that gets as close to the original as possible without going to France to get it.

The cocktail is exactly the same as the Quebec Cocktail (in slightly smaller proportions) but it is rye that centers the drink in New York not Canada. Using rye with such flavorful spirits is a good idea because it holds its own. You can taste the whiskey in concert with bitter cherry and orange flavors. The cocktail is rich but brighter tasting than a Manhattan, perhaps owing to the dry vermouth in stead of sweet vermouth.

• 1 1/2 oz. rye (Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye used)
• 1/2 oz. dry vermouth (Carpano dry used)
• 1/4 oz. Luxardo Maraschino
• 1/4 oz. Amer Picon (DIY Amer Picon used)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. (Maraschino cherry garnish recommended.)

Silver Cocktail

What a classic tasting gin cocktail! All the bitter and sweet flavors are in perfect balance in the Silver Cocktail. The maraschino liqueur, though in small quantity, really goes well with the bitterness of the dry vermouth and gin. Orange bitters, also in small quantity, link up with the lemon twist to send the drink in a citrus direction. It's bold and interesting, yet not so strong as to cause you to wince. All evenly spaced. Maybe that is why this cocktail is called "silver," despite there being no egg white to affect the color.

• 2 oz. gin (MurLarkey ImaGination used)
• 1 oz. dry vermouth (Rivata used)
• 1 tsp. maraschino liqueur
• 3 dashes orange bitters (Hella used)
• lemon twist

Combine all ingredients except lemon twist in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon peel twisted over top. 

Rose and White Rose

I thought it fitting to do both the Rose cocktails together in a single post with the same gin. Equally fitting is the choice of Boodles, a traditional London style gin to go with these two British houses that the cocktails signify.

It is interesting that apart from gin these cocktails have nothing in common. The Rose is one of those apricot brandy, gin and lemon juice combos that you find everywhere in old bar books. It might be the most common combinations behind gin and vermouth!

The White Rose is completely different. It is the first egg white and orange juice cocktail I've come across. There's a ton of maraschino liqueur in there too! The texture and flavors are so opposite each other that it was fun to have both at once.

Here's how to make them:

Rose 

• 2 oz. gin (Boodles used)
• 1 oz. apricot brandy
• 1 oz. dry vermouth (Rivata used)
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. grenadie
• lemon wedge
• sugar

Coat the rim of a chilled cocktail glass with sugar by using rubbing a lemon wedge around it and dipping the glass in sugar. You can discard the lemon wedge or use it as a garnish (and rightly so, to control the acid level in the cocktail. just squeeze more in if you find the drink too sweet as I did.) Shake all liquid ingredients in a cocktail shaker full of ice and strain it into the glass.

White Rose

• 2 oz. gin (Boodles used)
• 1 oz. maraschino liqueur (Luxardo used)
• 2 oz. orange juice
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1 tsp. sugar syrup 
• 1 egg white

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake to chill and strain to remove the ice. Shake again to add foam and pour into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Allen Cocktail

So who is this Allen guy? Someone messaged me on Instagram to tell me that this drink is like an Aviation. Yes, it is. An Aviation with no creme de violette, anyway. It is a very classic drink with a good portion of gin and maraschino liqueur, as it should be.

I'm trying to use more local gins so today I'm featuring K.O. Distillery's Battle Standard Navy Strength gin. It packs a broadside of alcohol at 114-proof. That makes this diminutive cocktail go a little farther for sure.

• 2 oz. gin (Battle Standard Navy Strength used)
• 1/2 oz. maraschino liqueur
• 1 1/2 oz. lemon juice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.