Crop Top

 

Story

The Crop Top is an invention of Devon Tarby, a rockstar bartender and co-owner of Death & Co.  She created this light, citrusy drink as a variation on the much heavier Last Word cocktail.  Both are members of the Sidecar family of cocktails, which are defined by the combination of base spirit, a nontrivial amount of flavored liqueur, and citrus (almost always lemon). The classic sidecar is cognac + Cointreau + lemon. Here the base is gin, the Cointreau is replaced by a mix of Amaro Montenegro and grapefruit liqueur.  Together they bring bit of cinnamon and a prominent note of fresh grapefruit, which almost puts one in mind of a tiki cocktail.  I don't double-strain this drink because I like the texture of the tiny ice crystals that get through a single strainer.  Cheers!

Recipe

0.75 oz Beefeater gin
0.75 oz Amaro Montenegro
0.75 oz Giffard Creme de Pamplemousse
0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
Shake with ice, then strain into chilled Nick & Nora or coupe.  No garnish. 

Pumpernickel

 

Story

A Sother Teague cocktail is never boring, and that’s certainly the case with the Pumpernickel.  This cocktail answers the question, “Is it possible to lean all the way into a specific flavor and still have a drink that’s both balanced and complex?”  The answer is yes, and the flavor in this case is that of baking spice.  That term is used to refer to a collection of aromatic ingredients like nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves.  They tend to evoke the fall and winter holidays, when gingerbread and mulled cider are just the thing for chilly evenings.  This recipe features a big hit of Angostura bitters.  Common wisdom is to reduce the amount of bitters used in a batch cocktail, since the aromatic and bitter compounds can intensify somewhat as the cocktail ages. But given the flavor profile of this particular cocktail, and the fact that the Angostura is balancing the bitter elements in both the amaro and the vermouth (Punt e Mes), I didn’t back off very much.  The lemon does a nice job of tying everything together, so don’t skip it.  Finally, the recipe as written is served “down” (in a rocks glass with no ice), and I think I prefer it that way, but I also tried it with ice and that’s good too.  Cheers!

 
Recipe

1.5 oz rye (Rittenhouse 100)
0.75 oz Amaro Ramazzotti (or Amaro Abano)
0.25 oz Punt e Mes
7 dashes Angostura bitters
-Stir the ingredients with ice.  Strain into rocks glass (ice optional). Express lemon twist, discard.