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It kind of looks like you have a snail wrapped around the rim of that glass. Who's saying I didn't? Kinda looks like something they make you eat on reality shows like Survivor...

Not really. I would also go easy on the Maraschino in a Brooklyn -- I thought it dominated a bit. For Amer Picon, your choices include: Real Amer Picon (although its not the same as the historic ingredient)Toriani Amer (never had or seen it, but I've heard it's not a close match)Bittermen's Amer Nouvelle (Lacks the caramel coloring, but in this drink it wouldn't matter)Amaro CioCiaro (pretty close; now available in Massachusetts; available at DrinkUpNY.com)Amaro Lucano (not quite as close, but I'd use it)Amer Boudreau (a homemade infusion of orange and/or bitter orange peel in GNS, Amaro Ramazzotti, and Stirring's Orange Bitters; mine is VERY bitter, and I did diluted it with vodka to about 80 proof)Or a concoction of your own design -- something bitter, orange, and a bit spicy.A while back David Wondrich in this post had suggested 15 ml Everclear and 1 ml Angostura orange bitters for every 100 ml Amaro Ciociaro as another alternative for homemade Amer Picon. Having never had the original it is hard for me to say if it does the job or not. Bittermen's Amer Nouvelle would seem like the simplest option if readily available. I have the Amaro Ciociaro and when feeling lazy tend to just use that and a splash of Angostura, foregoing the extra proof from Everclear.

Which provides an excellent use for the memo pad on the iPhone (or other smart phone)! I routinely add drink recipes to it that I would like to try made by a professional so that I have them with me if the bartender is unfamiliar with them or to make for friends when I am away from home.

Ah! That would indeed explain it.

Don't think I could ever do a 10 bottle bar. I am more about the 100 bottle bar! I don't like having to make hard choices because of a dearth of options. I prefer making fun choices because of a wealth of options!

I wonder if there is any correlation to Morse Code with this odd drink name? Three dots and a dash is a "V" but not sure I see a ready connection.

My apologies! I knew that you were the Brand Ambassador and not a brand manager but still managed to get it wrong above.

Never had it but have only seen bad reviews of it. Unless you need something to help light the charcoal grill probably best to stay away from it!

I have it and like everything about it except the price. It is grossly overpriced and I doubt I will buy more because of that. I do think the rye whiskey it will become could be an interesting addition when it has had a chance to mature and will likely try at least one bottle to see. I find it has an interesting bready rye flavor with a hint of sweetness and very little new make harshness. Going with an 80 proof spirit was probably a good move in that regard. I have no skill at creating cocktails but would think it would have potential as a mixer in a drink where that malty rye forward flavor is desirable. Maybe a bit like a really malty genever without the juniper?

That is indeed a great tip and one I will try to remember.

Rafa is right. It's from the Bartender's Choice app which I recommend getting if you haven't already... Amazing collection of cocktails for $2.99. Thanks to both of you. Sounds right tasty!

Time for a party! A really, really big party... I don't plan to be moving for a few years yet but that time is likely coming and I don't look forward to it.

Do you think the time on the shelf had any impact? Was the original an open bottle? The brand manager for Tanq suggested that in his opinion the original did not manage to hold up well sitting on the shelf for a long while even if it was never opened and would not be as "fresh" as the new stuff which reportedly is made the same as before.

This sounds like an interesting drink! Is it a 1:1:1 ratio like a classic negroni?

Didn't have Lustau but used Bodegas Grant "La Garrocha" amontillado, which had a dry nutty taste to me, and thought it made an excellent drink. And a far better use for the sherry than drinking it on its own as I didn't care for it on its own. Would certainly be a different drink from one using a PX I would think. I save the PX for making my version of a bourbon based Spanish Harlem. Which should perhaps be renamed as a "Kentucky Harlan".

Hipster Pal? Seems a bit too obvious but perhaps Gran/Grand Pal? or Classic Pal?

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. Give it a shot. I don't find it medicinal, but I think for some people cherry liqueur will always = cough syrup. (That kept me from enjoying Cherry Heering for a while.) For me the flavors blend together, so I get dark red fruit from the cherry and vermouth's wine upfront and bitterness from the Cynar and Punt in the back. But I'm curious to see if other people find it off-putting. Interesting. I didn't find this combination from Imbibe Magazine to be particularly cough medicine-y at my St. Patty's gathering last weekend. Wilde Heart 1.5 oz Bushmills Black Bush Irish whiskey 0.75 Amaro Ciociaro 0.25 oz Cherry Heering Combine ingredients with ice, stir, strain and serve up. I rather enjoyed it in fact! Maybe the whiskey kept it from being too intense?

I had the opportunity to speak with Angus Winchester, Tanqueray brand manager, at the roll out party for Malacca here in Atlanta and he was of the opinion that the original bottling, no matter how well cared for, was likely to have diminished (or at least changed) over time. Having only tried the new release I have no way to know so take that for what it is worth. That said I suppose they could have "tweeked" the formula in the interim to suit what they perceive the public, and apparently particularly the bartenders, want. primarily I have never seen it in anything but a liter bottle and he said it was aimed at the restaurant/bar market rather than retail stores although it clearly has been available in some stores.

How can Bulleit call it "Small Batch" on the label then? How exactly are they using the word "batch." Not challenging your statements, but now I'm curious about this.Because in the whiskey business, and in most of the spirits business it would seem, making crap up (or at the very least bending the truth) is A-OK! Bulleit is "small batch" only in the sense that that they amount they bottle is presumably far less than the major distillers (although it seems to be everywhere as best I can tell) . But it isn't "Frontier Whiskey" from a secret family formula and it isn't distilled by Bulleit. It is sourced whiskey (Rye from LDI/MGP and Bourbon from Four Roses, at least until recently) and the brand is owned by one of the giants of the spirits world, Diageo, which seems at times to specialize in misinformation as a marketing strategy if you believe more than a few bloggers out there. Most of these companies that use LDI/MGP ryes at one time or another tried to make it appear the rye was their own creation and not bought in bulk from LDI/MGP. Willet is the only one that I don't think tried intially to hide the fact that it was LDI/MGP rye, perhaps because they are pretty well established as an NDP. Which is a bit ironic because with most everything else they bottle the source is generally not revealed. Selling booze is a weird business were transparancy seems to be a dirty word!

One of my favorite bartenders made a carbonated variation on an Aviation with it that I thought was delightful.

I find that Bowmore has a moderate smokiness without much iodine influence to them. The 15 is almost chocolate-y. The 18 is also delightful but a bit less smoke and peat and around $100 here. Don't know if that is an option for you with the LCBO. I don't get a lot of iodine with the Talsiker 18 either and at least moderate smoke. I can still find it under $100. For the moment...

Regarding the okolehao liqueur, my bottle does not taste sweet. You are right that there is a faint tropical/coconut flavor at first, but coconut rum does not come to mind. After this faint flavor, it packs a ton of punch & funk. It may be interesting to try it in an Eastern Sour instead of the bourbon. The stuff seems lethal though (and the Polynesian Paralysis well deserves its name! Better sit in a very comfortable chair before starting to sip on one). Maybe they have "refined" their formula over the years? My bottle was acquired at least a couple of years ago I believe. Could be. I just got mine this past December. I will try it again and see.

Thanks for reminding me about the okolehao. I have a bottle of the liqueur that I use in tiki drinks, including one that I think is in Remixed - the Polynesian Paralysis. It's really flavorful/funk. I don't remember a coconut taste though, I will have to check. I will be curious to hear what you think. It would certainly work in tiki-dom. But it is quite sweet and if not coconut then some sort of tropical fruit taste. But I definitely thought the new Okolehao 100 proof spirit to be a superior concoction although I can only presume it is much closer to the what the true okolehao would have tasted like. Hey FP! Did you ever give the okolehao liqueur a try in any cocktails? I was curious if you found a good use for it!

Rumors are rampant that WT 101 Rye will return, eventually, although possibly with less readily available at retail and with a focus on use in bars and available primarily in a 1 liter bottle. When it will return remains unclear.

Interesting. I acquired a bottle of the Dickel Rye recently and while it wasn't anything extraordinary it was not bad. Typical LDI/MGP rye that was perhaps a bit sweeter and maybe with a hint less of the typical LDI minty/dill sort of taste. Yesterday I was finally able to acquire a couple of bottles of the rereleased Tanqueray Malacca gin. Now I just have to figure out what to try first. I retasted the Dickel Rye today with some friends. After my rant yesterday I researched it a bit and realized it had been finished in Tennessee. It reminds me of Jack Daniels and the other Dickel Products. If you like Jack Daniels, this is the rye for you. I don't and the rye tended to exaggerate the qualities I don't care for. I do agree that it has less of the minty/dill thing. We tasted it against the Bulleit Rye that is the same raw rye spirit to start with as well as a bottle of Rittenhouse BIB. The Rittenhouse was everyone's favorite by far. The Bulleit was a ways back in second and way back was the Dickel. For the Money the Rittenhouse is the way to go in my book. It's getting harder to find, but when I find it I stock up. Rittenhouse is often a favorite rye but it is a very different too. It is a 51-ish percent rye whiskey with a lot of corn to give it some "body" and sweetness. That helps balance the rye spices and It is far more like a bourbon than the LDI/MGP ryes. The LDI/MGP rye is a 95% rye, 5% malt mashbill with no corn at all. The Dickel has been charcoal filtered after aging (which is a bit different from the regular Dickel and Jack Daniels whiskies which get charcoal filtered prior to going into the barrel I believe) and I think is what reduces the typical minty character of Bulleit and other LDI/MGP ryes. Bulleit is not charcoal filtered. I do like that it gives another option but can see how if you don't like Tennessee whiskey in general you might not like the Dickel rye.