jmfangio

According to the Google book search, they have back issues of The Strand at the Pasadena public library. I have to head out that way for an errand sometime this week. No reason that I can't make a little detour...

I usually reach for the Angostura (I'm going to have to pick up a bottle of the Fee's barrel aged before they're all gone), but I do find that if I'm using Bulleit bourbon instead of my usual rye, I like a dash of orange. I haven't tried the Vya sweet yet, but it's worth seeking out the Carpano Antica. Fabulous stuff, that'll quickly spoil you.

I love verbana, so that's what drew me to it in the first place. I just tried it in a Last Word, and it's fabulous. Not quite as herbal as the Chartreuse original, with hints of honey and mint. I'd like to try it in some other cocktails that call for Green or Yellow Chartreuse, perhaps a Bijou and a Widow's Kiss. I think it's worth seeking out. As they say on Cocktail DB: Special Recommendation.

Walked into K&L Wines today for some vermouth, and walked out with a bottle of this as an impulse buy. I'd never heard of it before, and can't find much information on it. Just took a little sip, and the flavor is a bit like Yellow Chartreuse, with a dash of Fernet Branca. Alright, maybe that doesn't sound so appealing, so here's the description from the fine folks at Wine Enthusiast Magazine, who gave it a 90-95 rating: I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but my first thought is to try it in a Last Word in lieu of the Chartreuse. Anyone have any more info or recipe ideas?

Here are a couple more recipes, from A Family Medicine Directory published in 1854, and (if you speak French), from Nouveau Manuel Complet du Distillateur Liquoriste, published in 1868. I'm finding lots of interesting stuff on the Google book search - I'm going on the hunt for defunct bitters recipes. I'll move any further discoveries over to the Cocktail Books or appropriate spirits threads.

Back to Corpse Revivers for just a moment... I was just browsing through the Google book search feature, and found a book from 1871 that I hadn't seen mentioned before, The Gentleman's Table Guide, by E. Ricket and C. Thomas, which includes yet another Corpse Reviver variation (from page 50, if you care to download the PDF): There are some beautiful illustrations in the book. I'm in love with this one:

I have no idea if I've created something new, or just stumbled upon an existing combination, but I've been wanting to play around with my Ramazzotti Amaro, so I just made myself a Manhattan variation with, 2 oz Rittenhouse 101 1/2 oz sweet vermouth 1/2 oz Ramazzotti Amaro and a few healthy dashes of Hermes Orange Bitters and I'm in heaven.

Haven't seen it, but if they're offering up decent recipes for classic cocktails, that certainly can't be a bad thing. Unfortunately, some liquor companies aren't exactly helping the cause with their marketing. There's a Martini & Rossi ad with this recipe: That's just wrong on so many levels...

Good point. You reminded me of an article that I saw last year on five drinks that bartenders hate to make. The martini makes the list because it's basically an invitation for the customer to tell you that you're doing it wrong, no matter how you make it.

For me, it's a martini. I can't find the exact quote, but Escoffier once said something to the effect that eggs are the most basic test of a chef's skill, and I think of the martini as the omelette of the cocktail world - only two ingredients (well, three, if you want a dash of orange bitters), not hard to get right if you know the basic technique, but also very easy to screw up.

Hopefully they're just between batches. It would be dark day in the cocktail world if they're discontinued. For now, they're also available here.

...you raise your own chickens so you'll have fresh eggs for cocktails? The NY Times has a piece today on city dwellers who raise their own chickens, and gives a shout out to LeNell Smothers, and includes a recipe for the Ramos Fizz. Here's a link to the article, but this is the money quote: I don't know how to top that. Take up glassblowing so you can make your own cocktail glasses?

I won't be able to make this until my Amer Picon replica is ready, but here's a recipe from The Gentleman's Companion: The Amer Picon "Pouffle" Fizz, something native originally to Paris, & encountered at the Cafe du Dome, where in spite of the American inundation of pseudo-bohemians is still a moderately consistent rendezvous for other Americans over there who do things with their brains and hands Simply turn 1 to 1 1/2 jiggers of Amer Picon into a shaker, ad lots of cracked ice, the white of 1 fresh egg, 1/2 jigger of grenadine, shake, then turn everything into a big thin goblet and fill up with club soda to suit taste. This is a fine stomachic, and inspires interest in food.

Those may be some of the last bottles left in the country - I stopped by Du Vin today to pick up some Ramazzotti Amaro (there's an Amer Picon replica in my future), and they mentioned that they sold their last bottle yesterday.

Looks like these folks have what you need. According to their FAQ, they have them as small as 1/4 oz.

Hmmm...you could always start with a Ramos Gin Fizz recipe, and swap out the orange flower water for the Elderflower liqueur?

I've been waiting for you to get to the Corpse Reviver No. 2. It's a bit of a sentimental favorite - along with the Jasmine, it was one of the first cocktails to inspire me to move beyond martinis (thanks, Drinkboy!), and is a damn fine drink in its own right. A local wine shop has a bottle of Cocchi gathering dust on a back shelf - I'll have to pick it up and give it a try in this. The point I wanted to raise, though, is that this is the one pre-Prohibition cocktail where I actually prefer Pernod over absinthe. I think the sweeter anise tones work a bit better than the slightly more bitter tones of the absinthe. Of course, that may be a function of the absinthe I'm using (Verte de Fougerolles), but since that's the only one I know, I don't have any basis for comparison. I'd be curious to hear your thoughts if you try it again with Pernod.

We all seem to be on a St. Germain kick. I made a batch of Tequila por Mi Amante after reading about it on Cocktail Chronicles, and tried it in a standard 3:2:1 Margarita (delicious), but then decided to give it a try substituting the St. Germain for the Cointreau. Fruity, floral, and dangerously smooth. For the next round I mixed the Amante with a bit of reposado, just to get a bit of peppery tequila bite. 1 oz Tequila por Mi Amante 1/2 Tequila reposado 1 oz St. Germain 1/2 oz lime juice Shake, strain, sip contentedly.

Wow - that sounds like a fun evening! Now I think you need to make several rounds of Attys, with different violet/absinthe combos. You know, for science. Oh, I don't get the 'sky blue' tint in my Aviations, either, but I do detect a very faint violet hue in an Atty. edit - I forgot to ask, how much is the Rothman & Williams, and is it available in California yet? Google gave me no love when I tried to find a place to buy it.

The Seagram's Distiller's Reserve is surprisingly good, and at $12.99 at BevMo, hard to beat for the price. Simon Difford gave it 4 1/2 stars in his recent guide to gin. It won't replace any of my usual favorites (Plymouth, Beefeater's, and Bombay, and No. 209 or Martin Miller's when I'm feeling flush) but I'll gladly pick it up again.

Or, tweak the proportions a bit and garnish with a ming sprig, and it's a Seventh Heaven No. 2. I haven't tried this version, but I quite like the Seventh Heaven. However, these two recipes remind me of what Martin Doudoroff said way back on the second page of this thread, regarding the Savoy as an early example of a 'shovelware' book, "- many recipes are essentially identical except for name or some trivial detail."

Stopped by Du Vin today to pick up my bottle of Suze and asked, "Hey, have you been selling a lot of this lately?" "Are you kidding? I sold two cases yesterday!" Spoke to the owner and the manager for a bit - they bought 110 bottles when their importer announced that they were going to stop carrying it, and they're down to about 20 bottles after my purchase. I also told them about this thread, and how it may have contributed to clearing them out. Tomorrow evening's game plan: come home from yoga, shower, rehydrate, White Negroni! Edit: The owner also said that for years he's been trying to get his hands on some Amer Picon, but no luck so far.

YMBACS/GI... you frequently use your jigger as a measuring cup whilst cooking ← Or, on the other hand, your jigger is gathering dust since you discovered that your Oxo mini angled measuring cup is perfect for cocktails.

When you keep track of your friend's travel plans, and beg them to bring back hard to find ingredients. Housesitting for friends going to Tokyo = bottles of Hermes Violet and orange bitters.

Thanks for the recipe! I'll try to pick up a bottle of Suze this week and give it a whirl. I wasn't even aware that there was an Amber Noilly Prat. Unfortunately, according to Wikipedia, "AMBER NOILLY PRAT is only available for purchase from Noilly Prat in its shop in Marseillan."