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.

 

Manhattan Transfer (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

I'm still in a Manhattan mood and trying new variations of that classic, this time with rye, Ramazzotti and dry vermouth. It turns out that Ramazzotti is one of the ingredients in my homemade Amer Picon, which is mostly an infusion of oranges in MurLarkey Justice white whiskey. So I used Amer Picon to carry off the Ramazzotti flavor needed for the drink and inadvertently made a variation of the Brooklyn cocktail. 

I'm sure the Brooklyn was the inspiration for the Manhattan Transfer, but having no Amer Picon, they used Ramazzotti and the rest is history. 

• 1 1/2 oz. Catoctin Creek Distiller's Edition rye
• 1 oz. dry vermouth (Dolin used)
• 1 oz. Ramazzotti (homemade Amer Picon used)
• 1 dash orange bitters (Hella used)

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

Virginia Commonwealth Cocktail (Original Recipe)

This cocktail is very Virginia-centric, with two ingredients coming from the Old Dominion. (Local bitters could also be used but that would mean using something from D.C.) This variation on an Manhattan has a lot of orange and apple flavors as well as herbal notes to keep the rye interesting.

Catoctin Creek from Purcellville, VA, has a unique bite to its 100% rye formulation. It loves being mixed with amari like Ramazzotti, which gives this cocktail an orange flavor. Mt. Defiance Distillery makes a piquant apple brandy and wine-based vermouth that is tawny and sweet. Alone it doesn't carry off the cocktail, but with Ramazzotti it is nicely rounded with bitterness. Hella orange bitters tighten everything up, as does the orange zest.

• 3 oz. Catoctin Creek rye
• 1/2 oz. Mt. Defiance sweet vermouth
• 1/2 oz. Ramazzotti
• 3 dashes Hella orange bitters
• orange zest

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