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"Trompe la Langue" Cocktails


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Nothing earth-shattering here, but I realized the other night that yet another way to categorize drinks is by their ability to fool the tastebuds. The one that will probably jump first to most minds is Harrington's Jasmine, which mimics grapefruit juice:

1-1/2 oz gin

1/4 oz Cointreau

1/4 oz Campari

3/4 oz lemon juice

But there are others that fool in different ways. I would swear that the Afonso Special had citrus in it:

1 oz gin

1 oz dry vermouth

1/2 oz Grand Marnier

1/4 oz sweet vermouth

1 dash aromatic bitters

Robert Hess's Voyager tastes like weak, flat Coke (believe it or not, I mean that in a good way), especially if you use a demerara rum:

2 oz rum

1/2 oz Benedictine

1/2 oz falernum (John Taylor)

1/2 oz lime juice

My own invention, the Catcher, has a definite aura of vermouth:

1-1/2 oz cognac (Landy VS)

1/2 oz 100-proof rye (Rittenhouse)

1/2 oz Maraschino (Luxardo)

1 tsp Benedictine

Two dashes aromatic bitters

Any other cocktails that can amuse in this way or -- perhaps more useful -- be used to win bar bets?

Oh, a bonus -- if you make a Sidecar:

2 oz. cognac

1 oz. triple sec

1/2 oz. lemon juice

with Christian Brothers brandy, it tastes enough like a Creamsicle to make you think you're nine years old.

Dave Scantland
Executive director
dscantland@eGstaff.org
eG Ethics signatory

Eat more chicken skin.

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Cocktails with Cointreau or curacao and lemon juice often taste to me like they have orange juice -- for instance, the Journalist:

2 oz. gin

.25 oz. Curacao

.25 oz. lemon juice

.5 oz. sweet vermouth

.5 oz. dry vermouth

Dash Angostura bitters

The first time I tasted this, I thought "Wow, a Bronx cocktail that I actually like!" It's got something of the flavor profile of orange juice, but without the heavy mouthfeel and cloying quality of orange juice itself.

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I'll bite. I submit this revision to Toby Maloney's Ginger Square, which is a liquid ginger snap:

2 oz cognac

1/2 oz Licor 43

1/2 oz blackstrap rum

3/4 oz lemon juice

1/2 oz ginger syrup

1-2 dashes Regan's orange bitters

1-2 dashes Angostura bitters

Chris Amirault

eG Ethics Signatory

Sir Luscious got gator belts and patty melts

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One of the classics is the Long Island Iced Tea, which has no tea in it, but presents a reasonable taste facsimile of iced tea (with a bit more punch).

John Sconzo, M.D. aka "docsconz"

"Remember that a very good sardine is always preferable to a not that good lobster."

- Ferran Adria on eGullet 12/16/2004.

Docsconz - Musings on Food and Life

Slow Food Saratoga Region - Co-Founder

Twitter - @docsconz

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But there are others that fool in different ways. I would swear that the Afonso Special had citrus in it:

1 oz gin

1 oz dry vermouth

1/2 oz Grand Marnier

1/4 oz sweet vermouth

1 dash aromatic bitters

Isn't Grand Marnier sorta citrus based?

Margaret McArthur

"Take it easy, but take it."

Studs Terkel

1912-2008

A sensational tennis blog from freakyfrites

margaretmcarthur.com

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