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I heard Sother Teague say on a podcast that the only misuse of bitters is to miss using bitters, and I got to wondering about some of the great Club drinks that don’t include them.  Then I learned some definitions that I didn’t know.  An extract is made by soaking a single flavoring agent in alcohol (e.g., vanilla extract).  Tinctured bitters (aka non-potable bitters) are an extract with the addition of multiple flavors and a bittering agent.  These are the little bottles like Angostura bitters that are used to season a drink.  If you add sugar to the mix, you get potable bitters, which are intended to be sipped alone or mixed into a drink.  The different types of amari (Campari, Averna, Montenegro) are examples of potable bitters.  “Amaro”, it turns out, is Italian for “bitter”.  So if we’re using an amaro, the bitters component is already there.

This week’s cocktail is a variant on the Boulevardier (1.5 bourbon / 0.75 sweet vermouth/ 0.75 Campari).  Here the base is split between rye and apple brandy, the Cynar adds some earthy bittersweetness, and the ratios are shuffled a bit to create balance.  This is another drink where each sip is a journey through different flavors.  

The recipe way created by bartender Brian Kane during his time at the now-shuttered Abe Fisher in Philadelphia.  I learned of it in the excellent book Batched Cocktails by Maggie Hoffman.  Maggie is formerly of Serious Eats and now has her own site, The Dinner Plan.

Recipe

0.75 oz bourbon (Rittenhouse)
0.5 oz apple brandy (Laird’s)
0.5 oz Carpano Antica sweet vermouth
0.5 oz Campari
0.25 oz Cynar
-measure ingredients into mixing glass with ice.  Stir to chill. Strain into rocks glass over fresh ice.
-express lemon twist and use as a garnish.