plattetude

Poet's Dream, using Dave Wondrich's proportions -- 2 oz gin (Beefeater) 1 oz dry vermouth (Dolin) 1/2 tsp Benedictine 2 dashes orange bitters (Srappy's) Very good, but not as transcendant as I'd had at Lantern's Keep. Next time, I'll try with Plymouth, which I think will keep it a little more "dreamy." Christopher

Don't think that can be classified as a Negroni . I can certainly call it a variation.

I tried an interesting variation last night -- subbed Krogstad aquavit for gin (with Carpano Antica and Luxardo Bitter). Really nice. Christopher

Gruet, maybe? The best New Mexican bubbly you'll find. (Actually, really good. Particularly good for cocktails.) Christopher

Negroni -- Ransom Old Tom, Luxardo Bitter, and Punt e Mes (equal parts). Really nice, rich variant on the standard. Christopher

Off-the-cuff use of my new bottle of Bitterman's Hellfire Shrub: 2 oz blanco tequila (El Tesoro) 1 oz blanc vermouth (Dolin) 1/4 oz Cynar 12 drops Hellfire Shrub Me likey.

You can only assume so much about the quality of the food and the judging based on how the Magical Elves have edited. Invariably, *every* judges' table session is likely going to be edited to make it look close so there's some degree of suspense. It's entertainment first and foremost. If you want a clearer explanation of why they made the choice they did, check the Top Chef blogs. (Frankly, I'm so little invested in the outcome with this lot that I don't have the interest myself.) But piling on with everyone, yeah, those were some ludicrous challenges last night. Christopher

Except that was Heather who made the cake twice, not Sarah.

I think the (geographically) closest viable option is Lantern's Keep at the Iroquois. But that's not exactly in the same neighborhood. Christopher

Last night's tipple: 2 oz Patron Reposado 1/2 oz Cynar 1/4 oz Yellow Chartreuse 3 dashes Bitterman's Xocolatl Mole Bitters Good stuff.

One key difference: Final Ward also subs lemon for lime. But either can certainly work. Christopher

Me, I certainly lean heavily on Chartreuse (always have both yellow and green, but tend to use the green more), apricot liqueur (Rothman and Winter), but even moreso, Cynar is a major ingredient for me. Probably due more than anything to Rogue Beta Cocktails, which features a few absolute knockout cocktails featuring Cynar. (Favorite being "Growing Old and Dying Happy Is A Hope, Not an Inevitability", which as a cocktail, certainly earns it's long, long name.) Christopher

Cobbled together this last night: 2 oz Laird's bonded Applejack 3/4 oz Bonal gentiane 1/4 oz Cynar 1/4 oz R&W Orchard Apricot 3 dashes TBT orange bitters Stir, coupe, enjoy. Probably could've bumped up the R&W, or even dashed in a bit of simple, but overall, a winner. I do like the dual but distinct bitternesses of the Bonal and the Cynar. Christopher

Not exactly, but something similar I got some years ago (and love): Click! Christopher

What I've come to call a "Hemingway Mocquiri": 2 oz white rum (Matusalem) 1 oz lime 1/4 oz Campari 1/4 oz maraschino simple syrup to taste float of Wray and Nephew's overproof rum Basically (and one assumes obviously) a riff on a Hemingway Daiquiri, with the lime+Campari standing in for the lime+grapefruit, which is useful when one's larder has limes far more often than grapefruit. And it's so tasty, mock or otherwise. Christopher (edited to add float)

I like Oren's Daily Roast for my beans. Plenty of retail locations around midtown and Upper East Side, and a good variety of estate beans from all over. Christopher

70 percent? Really? 140 proof? I hope you mean 70 proof. From what I recall, though, there's 50 proof and 64 proof, but I could be wrong. Christopher Really - it's 70%. Zoinks. Guess that's essentially a grappa rather than a liqueur. Pardon my doubting!

70 percent? Really? 140 proof? I hope you mean 70 proof. From what I recall, though, there's 50 proof and 64 proof, but I could be wrong. Christopher

It may be a relatively new concept to apply méthode champenoise to beer, but I know DeuS, from Brouwerij Bosteels (Kwak, Tripel Karmeliet) and Malheur Brut have both been around nearly 10 years. So is Sam Adams doing something never-been-done? Not so much. Christopher

Ransom Old Tom, neat. Whoa. Late to the game, but man how frickin' incredible this stuff is. Followed by an Ephemeral cocktail (sort of) 1 1/2 oz Ransom Old Tom 1 oz Dolin blanc vermouth 1/3 oz St. Germain 2 dashes Angostura bitters (because I have no celery bitters) Christopher

Light Horse Tavern is a very good neighborhood joint in the Paulus Hook section of Jersey City, food better than you'd expect for the area and a killer beer menu (and a pretty decent wine list too). Very accessible by the Light Rail (as is Liberty State Park, and Zeppelin Hall for that matter -- so you can park once, then get around by Light Rail as needed). Christopher

Finally mixed a couple of these this weekend to have with my wife. Oh lordie that's good stuff. Christopher

That looks very strange, to say the least. Seems like fig stuff might work with brandy though, using it sort of like the marmalade in an Omar Bradley. If I was being charged to make a citrus-free drink with fig jam thats where I would start. Still, you go first. I'd maybe ditch the maraschino and absinthe and do a 1/2 oz Cocchi Barolo Chinato with the bourbon and bitters. The spice in the Chinato would seem to me to be a good foil for the fig. If you don't have the Chinato, maybe a 1/2 oz Carpano Antica and a scant tsp pimiento dram.... Of course, now you're essentially in the world of Manhattan variations, but who said there's anything wrong with that? Christopher

I'm staring at the box of Lemon Chalet Cremes on my desk and thinking they're not *that* much different than eating a muffin in the morning.... So. Good. Christopher

If I may interject, I'm pretty sure Sam meant to type "seek out" and not "seek our". And I agree with him, fwiw -- you certainly should seek it out. Makes for some interesting cocktail variations when subbed for sweet vermouth, too. Christopher