Lovely balance and complexity. And very versatile...whatever the clock says the time is, it's a fine time for one of these.
Responding to previous commenters, we think that the sugar syrup is absolutely necessary here to integrate the other ingredients and bring everything into harmony. Use as little or much as is to your preference but without it we think that the drink is in danger of disintegrating into a disparate clatter of spirit and liqueur. We loved it as specified but can understand why some might wish to reduce the syrup just a bit.
Perhaps those espousing no sugar syrup might wish to experiment with bitters as a bridge between the other ingredients and let us know of their successes.
Responding to previous commenters, we think that the sugar syrup is absolutely necessary here to integrate the other ingredients and bring everything into harmony. Use as little or much as is to your preference but without it we think that the drink is in danger of disintegrating into a disparate clatter of spirit and liqueur. We loved it as specified but can understand why some might wish to reduce the syrup just a bit.
Very restrained and elegant. We think that this would make for a really lovely gentle and sophisticated foil to a 'big' dessert...maybe a plum and amaretti (almond biscuit) semifreddo. Bravo to the creator.
Exquisitely balanced and very elegant. Bravo.
Beautifully rich and delicate at the same time...and perfectly balanced. We didn't have Elderberry liqueur so, on a whim, substituted Davidson Plum Aperitivo and a mist of Elderflower liqueur. Really delicious for us.
Play nicely now, gentlemen! Midori: I haven’t had that spirit (liqueur) here since 1969. Tho j do believe my sister may have had some during the late 80s 😉
No, just a couple of old rams enjoying a gentle and friendly head-butting, for the fun of it.
If Bourbon Whiskey was vodka. It is a perfectly compliant, mixing Bourbon and a very easy sipper (minus the burn). Unfortunately zero distinctions.
Our workhorse Bourbon for just about any cocktail except an Old Fashioned, for which we insist on using Elijah Craig Small Batch.
Cab Calloway was also a contemporary of Dashiell Hammett and Lillian Hellman. So we insisted on serving this straight up in a Nick and Nora glass, where it sat very snugly. A really beautifully balanced sipper that just gets better and better as the warmth seeps into it.
btw...and cream sherry is spot on.
Cab Calloway was also a contemporary of Dashiell Hammett and Lillian Hellman. So we insisted on serving this straight up in a Nick and Nora glass, where it sat very snugly. A really beautifully balanced sipper that just gets better and better as the warmth seeps into it.
A really excellent Manhattan. Since the Amaro is to the forefront, we thought that Montenegro, on its own, might be a wee bit timid up against the two whiskeys. So we did a split of 30ml Montenegro and 15ml Nardini. Lovely for us. We used Elijah Craig Small Batch for the Bourbon and Rittenhouse for the Rye.
It's a big and very delicious drink. We wonder why our good host hasn't reviewed Cocchi's Barolo Chinato...our go to.
Since the cocktail's name references 'The Big Easy' (for no apparent reason), we might try a rinse of Absinthe instead of the Mezcal next time around.
The Absinthe rinse worked mighty fine for us...2.5ml was enough.
Really lovely balance. Bravo. We're sure that the scribblers back in the day would have enjoyed this.
We suspect that when there is a combination of citrus, the drink benefits from a bit of patience to allow them to harmonise. This one certainly got better and better for us as we headed for the bottom of the glass.
Lovely cocktail. Maybe a distant Azzuri offspring of those simple, pure and wonderful 'old timey' Old Fashioneds. For us, the 7.5ml volume of Mezcal as a rinse is a bit indulgent...2.5ml worked just fine.
Since the cocktail's name references 'The Big Easy' (for no apparent reason), we might try a rinse of Absinthe instead of the Mezcal next time around.
Lovely cocktail. Maybe a distant Azzuri offspring of those simple, pure and wonderful 'old timey' Old Fashioneds. For us, the 7.5ml volume of Mezcal as a rinse is a bit indulgent...2.5ml worked just fine.
Very tasty and elegant. But since we are attempting here to exorcise a spirit (pun intended), we thought something bolder might be required. We substituted Anejo for the Reposado, split the Amaro 22.5ml Averna and 7.5ml Fernet, switched to lime juice (we think that could be nudged up to 25ml, if you wish), substituted Agave for the Maple Syrup and added four drops of Margarita Bitters. Maybe that will put Debbie in her place. Anyway, we hesitated to add garlic to the mix and out of deep admiration and respect for the Christian faith didn't think for a moment of using a crucifix as a garnish.
We couldn't resist pushing the envelope on this and so, on a second pass, throwing caution to the wind and enlisting the services of the Benedictine and Carthusian monks, we did it as 30ml Anejo Tequila, 25ml Averna, 5ml Fernet, 2.5ml each of Benedictine and Yellow Chartreuse, 10ml Agave Syrup, 25ml lime juice and four drops of Margarita bitters. We hope that Debs will now accept this as the last word (again, pun intended). We're calling it 'The Exorcist'.
Very tasty and elegant. But since we are attempting here to exorcise a spirit (pun intended), we thought something bolder might be required. We substituted Anejo for the Reposado, split the Amaro 22.5ml Averna and 7.5ml Fernet, switched to lime juice (we think that could be nudged up to 25ml, if you wish), substituted Agave for the Maple Syrup and added four drops of Margarita Bitters. Maybe that will put Debbie in her place. Anyway, we hesitated to add garlic to the mix and out of deep admiration and respect for the Christian faith didn't think for a moment of using a crucifix as a garnish.
That would certainly be interesting, though that's quite a citrusy. Amaro Lucano would be my sub!
Not having access to CioCiaro, we were about to go with Amaro Nardini when we noticed your comment. The drink was excellent with Amaro Lucano. As it warms, it blossoms, and serving in a Nick and Nora glass (as opposed to a Coupe) slows the warming to allow for longer sipping. We'll try Nardini next time.
We have no access to CioCiaro so, on nothing other than a hunch, went with Nardini Amaro. An exceptional bourbon sour.
We'd love to try this but, where we are, aren't within coo-ee of a bottle of Oude genever. Is there an acceptable substitute?
If the thumb screws were applied, we would probably concede that this is our favourite of favourite Margaritas. Out of curiosity, we used Clement Creole Shrubb in place of the Triple Sec (which, as we understand it, usually uses a neutral base spirit). We enjoyed the added Rum notes but would probably return to the original recipe more often for its pure and clean simplicity.
Very elegant indeed. We upped the Mezcal to 20ml for added depth. Bravo.