EvergreenDan

Dan: Try this Manhattan: 2 oz Rye -- something that you like neat 1/2 oz Punt e Mes 1/2 oz Dry vermouth 1-2 d Angostura or other pie-spice bitters If the rye is high proof, consider having it on the rocks or giving an extra long stir. Also works well with bourbon, but that's a bit sweeter and you are looking to tame that. Most amari are pretty sweet to sub in here. Nonino is a good choice. Probably will still need some dry vermouth, though. I hate sweet drinks, but there is something about a Manhattan that I don't understand which let's me like it in just about any ratio. Also, re the Aviation, I find that 1/2 tsp of Rothman & Winter Creme de Violette is enough for me, and I like it with a juniper-forward gin. I'm not a floral fan, so I like just enough violette to linger in the background. I like it, but it isn't my favorite.

Speaking of the cherry/bitter thing, have you ever tried Killepitsch? Some issue. The stuff it interesting, but difficult to use. BTW, it is very easy to copy cocktails from Kindred Cocktails to post to eGullet. Just click the "Plain text" link, copy the center format (which is appropriate for eGullet). In eGullet, turn off the rich text editor by clicking the little icon in top left corner, and paste. You'll get this: Smoke 'n Choke by Rafa García Febles, NYC. 3/4 oz Cynar 1/2 oz Dry vermouth, Dolin 1/2 oz Bianco Vermouth, Dolin 1/4 oz Islay Scotch, Caol Ila 1 twst Orange peel 3 oz Soda water Stir, strain into a chilled Collins over ice, top with soda, express and drop in twist, give it a quick stir and add a straw.

Tri - I noticed that there were multiple sites with the same instructions for Kill or Cure. They are all probably just taken from the same source. In this case, I wouldn't be surprised if the others were copied from CocktailDB. I wouldn't take it as evidence of there being a good reason for the instructions. You know the story about the woman who cut 1/3 off the roast and roasted it in a separate pan, right?

I have relatives who used to live there. I find your outlook refreshing. Those of us in the city should be more grateful for what we have ready access to, even if it isn't perfect or exactly to our liking.

@frogprincess: No Lillet on hand, but I happen to have Cocchi Americano open. Cocchi Americano: Light straw color, apricot, pear, white wine, moderately sweet, not bitter initially, building bitterness after the swallow. Pleasant. Too sweet to drink neat without acid, but very pleasant and accessible for the bitter-minded. Tempus Fugit Kina L'Avion d'Or: Rusty tan/brown color, citrus and berry, not much wine, modestly sweet, more immediately bitter which lingers and evolves. I could drink it straight, but I'd probably rather it with a squeeze of lemon. More challenging / less accessible than Cocchi. Interesting and worth seeking out. Not very similar to Lillet (from memory -- haven't had a bottle in a while). Expensive ($33 in Boston). And thanks for the St George gin reviews. I've been eyeing them. I'll try Terrior next I think.

The combination of cherry and bitter is daring (or risky, depending upon your point of view) only because bitter medicinal cough syrup is often cherry, and we have a negative association with that from childhood (and beyond). I need to try these.

I'd never even heard of this one... but I searched the recipe and I'll be trying it soon. Are the odds saying that I'll be back here posting that I didn't like it? 'Cause it sounds tasty to me. Kill or Cure on CocktailDB 2/3 sweet vermount, 1/3 Fernet. Sounds good if you like Fernet. Fernet is dry enough to stand up to that much sweet vermouth. But those are some weird instructions! Why the hell would I stir the vermouth to chill it and then pour it on room temp Fernet? Odd.

Chris, as much as I'd love to sit in front of you at your bar (and I really would), you'd be tilting at my windmill. And, yes, I hate Sazeracs too. Do I can hear you cancelling my eGullet account as I type? And I'm with Zachary. I do not see the appeal of Tiki drinks. I do not like them, Dan I am. A Negroni is not the easiest of bitter drinks to like. But once you've seen the appeal, it is a drink that stands up to just about any ratio and ingredient selections. If you hate a Negroni, its probably not because of how it was made. A cocktail geek who doesn't like a Martini is like a foodie who doesn't like foie gras or roasted bone marrow. You're not trying hard enough. Sorry Jeffrey. But enough about cocktails. Now for my thoughts on politics and religion.

I made a 20th C the other night using Tempus Fugit L'Avion d'Or, a mere 1/2 tsp of Marie Brizzard Creme de Cacao plus a dash of Bittermens Mole. It was good -- probably very good. The original is gagilicous. I'd like to try it with Mozart dry chocolate spirit, but I've never seen it for sale. Similarly, I like an Aviation with a mere 1/2 tsp of Creme de Violette. No more, lest Gramma come for a visit. I think a lot of classics -- even some of the best ones -- need tweaking for today's ingredients and tastes. My confession: An Old Fashioned is good spirits ruined with sugar, just like Irish Coffee is good whiskey ruined with good coffee.

Tempus Fugit Kina L'Avion d'Or. I used it in a Twentieth Century, which was okay (not my favorite drink). Any ideas for good applications? The stuff is pretty expensive for an aperitif wine, so I want to show it to good effect. I exhibited great restraint in passing up Kummel, Mehkong, Imbue Bittersweet and Petal & Thorn vermouths, a bunch of ryes that I hadn't seen before, some Texan corn whiskey, 3 St George gins, Sorel liqueur. I am so screwed if I walk past that place again.

I like your list, Adam. Assuming you have two more 750ml bottles, I would add Cynar. Add lemon and soda, and you have a nice aperitif. Add to gin and Gin-Cin-Cyn. And to rye for a Manhattan variant. Add to scotch for a Rob Roy variant. Add to dry vermouth for a 50:50 variant. @weinoo: "Sorry, I can't make you a XXX because I don't have the stuff. Would you like a YYY?". With 10 bottles, you can't have everything. I would add scotch as my 10th bottle. A lot depends upon your age. A younger crowd would enjoy weinoo's rum and tequila. And older crowd maybe Scotch. The Cynar is for you and your cocktail geek friends. I could live with three bottles. Scotch, gin, dry vermouth. Scotch neat in winter; Martini's and Gin & Tonic's in summer.

Which town?

Bowmore Legend is less than half the price of Lagavulin 16, at least here in Boston. I think it's a fantastic value.

I'm with Katie. I consider a dash to be about 1/4 tsp, which would be 1/24th of an ounce. But then I round it to 1ml too, which is 1/30th of an ounce. Measurements.

@JimJohn - May I suggest that if you are unclear about whiskies and how to make a Manhattan, that you start with a regular (i.e. sweet vermouth) Manhattan, or at most a Perfect Manhattan (split the vermouth equally between sweet and dry). Both are more accessible and more common than a Dry Manhattan. And both are easy to like with a variety of whiskies, although some ryes take some getting used to. A regular Manhattan made with an accessible bourbon is a good starting point -- appreciated by cocktail snobs and little old ladies alike

Has no one sub'd it for absinthe in a CR2 and called it a Necrophiliac?

My wit is drier than my Martini, which is both not saying much and saying not much. What does Malacca taste like? Sweeter, more fruit, less juniper? I wonder what people who paid big bucks for the "last remaining bottles" think about it's reintroduction.

I contend that Kerry has a bottle of Ransom flavored whiskey. Makes a killer Negroni, particularly with Punt e Mes. Let us know what you think.

Man I like those trumpet-shaped glasses. Functional, classic, and contemporary all at once.

1 1/2 oz rye (Rittenhouse) 1 1/2 oz Lapsang Souchong tea (very strong) 2 dash Boker's bitters Maybe not the perfect expression of the idea, but unsweetened cocktails are intriguing. Surely we need more than a Martini, no?

Rancho Gordo -- Fat Farm. Ha ha. But then "or maybe more" cracked up up too. I'm easily amused. That toddy sounds wonderful.

That sounds fabulous. Re proof: when I made my Amer Boudreau, I used 100 proof vodka to dilute it at the end, rather than water, to bring the proof up to 78. I followed Jamie's instructions for a lengthy infusion -- which Fredric at Cocktail Virgin Slut recommends against -- and found the result fabulously bitter. It seems like it would work well in this, perhaps at a reduce dose so as to now overpower the Benedictine.

Katie - I agree with you. And I agree with Mjx in that such cocktails can be made in the glass, but it's probably not as easy for novice use at home use. I see nothing wrong making accessible products for the novice (but legal-aged) drinker. This is, apparently, a touchy subject, as I discovered elsewhere.

My go-to cocktail for fruit liqueurs, syrups or juices is a flavored caipirinha or (if it were muddled fruit, a batida). For a syrup, I'd try: 2 oz cachaca .5 oz syrup .5 to .75 oz lime juice. Adjust for sweetness and fruit intensity. For tart liqueurs, I go as high as 1:1:0.5. There is something about the earthy, funky cachaca that seems to go a bit better than molasses rum, in most cases. I tend to prefer a daiquiri with a really wonderful rum, where the simplicity of the lime and pure sugar leaves the rum in the foreground.

Smoking Jacket. I used a mild single malt, skipped the bitters and dried it out a with a half part of dry vermouth. Excellent. Good intro to Scotch for the Scotch-o-phobe. Smoking Jacket by Paul Manzelli, Craigie and Bergamot, Boston, MA 1 1/2 oz Blended Scotch, Grant and Sons 3/4 oz Cynar 3/4 oz Sweet vermouth, Carpano Punt e Mes 1 oz Orange bitters Stir, strain, low ball, big cube