Among some of the more notable amari is Fernet, the infamous bitter from Milan. The most popular version of this is made by the Fratelli Branca Distillery, and has been made the same way since 1945. However, there is also a Luxardo version of Fernet, and even a domestically produced Fernet made by Leopold Bros. in Colorado. If you’ve never tasted Fernet and are unable to find it, you can replicate the sensation by filling your mouth with mint and band-aids, and having a good friend promptly punch you in the teeth.

Another of the great amari is Averna di Sicillia, which has an incredible complex flavor consisting of oranges, caramel and mint. It’s spectacular to mix with, or to sip on it’s own over ice. Both of these are a must have for your liquor cabinet.

Winter Cobbler
1 oz. Fernet Branca
1 oz. Averna di Sicilia
.75 oz. Blackberry Syrup
.75 oz. Lime Juice
Mint

In a shaker, combine amari, juice & syrup, along with a sprig of mint and some ice.  Shake well, and strain over a goblet or wine glass filled with crushed ice.  Garnish with blackberries, mint and canela.  Serve with short cut straws.

Smack That Mint Up.

Whenever using mint, it’s important to get the best looking, freshest mint possible.  Old mint can develop a bitter, grassy flavor that can ruin a cocktail.  Also, when garnishing with mint, it’s important to express the mint oil before inserting the sprig into the drink.  This is easily done by gently slapping the sprig a few times on the palm of the hand.  This will break open the oil cells (that’s a technical term) and get those minty aromas flowing.

After about a month it became clear that the more complex, challenging drinks were consistently our most demanded. Our customers want the new and exciting; the stuff that is pushing the boundaries of what can be done with a drink. This one, the Lost Art (of Keeping a Secret), was probably the most adventurous on our initial menu remains one of our best sellers. People have described it as tasting like “spicy chocolate cake” and “curry in a drink.” It’s complex, yet all the different flavors work in harmony to produce a well balanced cocktail.

The Lost Art (of Keeping a Secret)

In a Boston tin, combine an ounce of 100% agave tequila blanco, an ounce of winter falernum, a half an ounce of Cynar, a half an ounce of lime juice and a mint sprig. Shake vigorously over ice, and strain over a large ice cube in a rocks glass. Garnish with a mint sprig and serve with short cut straws.

Nice Ice: The Big Cube

Harry Craddock famously said in his 1926 Savoy Hotel Bar book, "Never use the same ice twice."

Building a drink with the right ice is a matter of having the correct ingredients. The Lost Art, for example, is shaken over a mix of large cubes and smaller half cubes, which emulsifies, chills and dilutes. The drink is then strained over a large cube, which has been chipped by hand and re-frozen.

We use the large cube when the drink has already been diluted, since the large cube melts very slowly and doesn’t dilute / chill much on it’s own.  The large cube can also be used for something like a premium whiskey if the customer wants a bit of a chill, but doesn’t want a whole glass of melting cubes in his spirit.

Joe Vaughn Photography

Joe also shot the Garden Party feature in Hour Magazine.  Look for about one new post a week which will include a drink recipe, as well as some amount of technique.

And, follow Joe on Twitter, while you’re at it:

@_joevaughn

The first new post will be up shortly!

Both bottles contain the same spirit: triple distilled, 100% rye. However, one was aged in a new charred American oak cask, while the other was aged in a previously used cask. The first difference you’ll notice is the color; the New Cask rye is a deep caramel, while the Aged Cask rye is a much lighter straw color.

Woodford describes these as “grain forward” (Aged Cask) and “barrel forward” (New Cask), which is pretty accurate. I personally prefer the New Cask Rye, but here are my tasting notes on them… both very interesting.

Woodford Reserve Aged Cask Rye
Aroma: Delicate, slightly grassy, lightly citrus and very subtle vanilla.
Taste: Green & black pepper, tastes young (duh), very light vanilla, clean finish.

Woodford Reserve New Cask Rye
Aroma: Wow. Shit tons of oak, cinnamon, caramel, vanilla on the nose.
Taste: Soft pepper and tons of nuttiness on the palate. Much fuller bodied than the Aged, with a slightly sweet finish.

Overall, these are both excellent, and a very fun experiment in aging, if you consider rye fun, which I do.  Personally, I prefer a “rye” that doesn’t have a 100% rye mash bill – Rittenhouse, Wild Turkey – where the pepper and snap from the rye is cut with sweetness of a corn, and which I generally find have a greater depth of flavor. Having said that, I’ll fuck up some Bulleit rye, which has a 95% rye mash bill.

Either way, I’m not going to use these in a drink, as they are way too expensive, but we’ll have them on hand at the bar if you want to try them.

Root Beer Flizzip
1 oz. Cruzan Black Strap Rum
1 oz. Art in the Age Root Liqueur
.5 oz. Canela Syrup
Whole Egg

Dry / Hard / Double / Nutmeg

And let me just take a moment to endorse Art in the Age Root Liqueur.  As I mentioned earlier, root beer plays a very important role in my life.  As soon as this stuff became available, I was on it like Michelle Kwan, dressed as Voltron at Comicon, drinking a Fin du Monde, chilling with Steve Zahn who was, as usual, acting like a moron.  It’s infinitely better than BlackMaker Root Beer Liqueur, which is another new product available here, and tastes artificially root beery.  Which I’m pretty sure, is a thing.

So let me be the first to say how very “fucking jazzed up” I am that the Haus Alpenz wine based liqueur portfolio is now on sale here.  It’s only stuff under 20% abv, but we’ll take it. With any luck, we’ll get the rest of the portfolio in the state next year, so we can really “run with the dick punchers,” as the kids say.

So yeah, we’re going heavy with that shit on my new menu.  Can you blame us?

The Historic Brownfield Project
1.5 oz. Wild Turkey Rye
.5 oz. Cynar
.5 oz. Cardamaro
3 dash Root Beer Bitters

This bastard tastes like a bitter little dirt sandwich, in all the right ways.  The root beer bitts really make the whole thing work, and if you squeeze a lemon peel over top, well, then you’re doing God’s work.

The Gun Show
1 oz. Vida Mezcal
1 oz. Elijah Craig 12 Year Bourbon
.375 oz. Chestnut Syrup
a few dashes orange bitters

Build in glass, add ice, stir, represent.

"That shit is fucking McMazing" - David Foster Wallace

Famous Last Words
.75 oz. Laphroaig
.75 oz. Aperol
.75 oz. Bonal
.75 oz. Lemon

Shake, double strain into a coupe.

You’re welcome.

“Reports from the south seas suggest the boys are taking quite a liking to the native’s rhum, which they’re drinking down with lime (to keep off the scurv) and white Italian wine, seized from a ship outside the TanHauser**** Port.  Apparently it’s really becoming quite the cocky-tail among the young seamen.”

The balance of the rum, lime and vermouth is really very nice, but I had a few modifications in mind for this one, to “sex it up” a bit.

The Douglas Cooper Cocktail #2
1 oz. El Dorado 3 Year aged Light Rum
1 oz. Cocchi Americano
.5 oz. Lime
1 barspoon house made apricot – ginger preserve
2 dash cardamom bitters

Shake, double strain into a coupe.

This thing is like the velvety sleeve of a wizard.

*Actually, I completely made this drink up last week, along with the name, which is so great.  But, it is roughly based on the Fig Leaf, which actually is a classic, so I’m not completely full of shit.
**Again, no such ship actually existed.
***To my knowledge, which is limited at best, there never was a Cuban-Panamanian war. And even if there was, why would a British war ship be involved? C’mon bro, you’ve got to be more critical in what you accept as fact.
****That TanHauser shit is from Bladerunner, the best movie ever.