Toothache

Here is one from "the lab" that I have spent the better part of the last few weeks trying to name, all the while while nursing a toothache. As I was getting ready to celebrate a trip to the dentist this afternoon, it struck me that "Toothache" was as good a name as any for this one! It's basically an "improved" version of the Neuva Jersey recipe I posted last December.

As for the taste, your eyelids may stay closed a beat longer than usual as you sip this one. Taking in the slightly sweet, smoked apple against the bright, almost medicinal aromas of the absinthe and wormwood bitters, it is easy to get lost in your senses.

This is an extremely enjoyable sipper, and one that has been well tested here in the lab I can assure you.

Toothache


1.5 ounces (45 ml) Laird's 100 proof bonded apple brandy
1.5 ounces (45 ml) Del Maguey Mezcal Vida
1 tsp Demerara Syrup*
2 "sprays" of absinthe
1 dash angostura bitters
1 dash Cocktail Kingdom Wormwood bitters (optional, but really nice)

*Demerara syrup= Mix 2 cups of demerara sugar with 1 cup of just boiled water in a sauce pan. Stir until mostly combined, adding gentle heat if necessary to get the mixture mostly saturated. Pour 1/2 ounce (15 ml) vodka into clean bottle, then pour the sugar/water mixture into the clean bottle, cap, and shake bottle until sugar is completely dissolved (it won't take long at that point).

As with the building of any Old Fashioned Cocktail, there is a certain ritual I have found that works best to create this drink:

Add 1 tsp of Demerara syrup to bottom of a double old fashioned glass. Then add 1-2 dashes of Angostura bitters.

Add ice cube, stir the sugar/bitter mix for a few seconds. Then add 1.5 ounces of apple brandy.

Stir again 4-5 times and then spray in a few squirts of absinthe from a small atomizer, enough to coat the interior of the glass.

Add more ice and the mezcal, stir again and add few dashes of Cocktail Kingdom's Wormwood bitters if you have them. Add lemon twist for garnish and you're ready for a toothache, or anything else that may come your way.

Bon Amigo

Mezcal, Benedectine, Ginger Liqueur, Cardamon, Cloves, Honey and Lime Juice....what a combination!

The "Bon Amigo" is my own drink, but don't let my last minute name fool you. This one has some thought behind it.

It was inspired by Bryan Dayton, a local bartender who is the beverage director and part-owner of "Oak at Fourteenth" in Boulder, CO.

Bryan likes to use cardamom and "Domaine de Canton" ginger liqueur together. I had one of his creations using these ingredients, with a Sombra Mezcal base, over a year ago and the flavors really struck me.

The trick here is not to muddle the cardamom pods too much, just open them up. Be sure to "double strain" here with a fine strainer, as there will be fine sediment from the cardamom and cloves after your hard shake.

Bon Amigo Cocktail


1.5 ounces (45ml) Del Maguey "Vida" Mezcal
.75 ounce  (22ml) Fresh Lime Juice
.25 ounce (7ml) Benedictine
.25 ounce (7ml) Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur
.25 ounce (7ml) honey syrup*
3 whole cardamom pods
2 whole cloves

Gently muddle 3 whole cardamom pods and 2 whole cloves in bottom of shaker. Add the rest of the ingredients and shake hard. Strain into a cocktail glass through a fine mesh strainer. No Garnish.
(*Honey syrup is 1 part honey to 1 part water.)

Just muddle the pods enough to open them up.

This has amazing layers of flavor and goes down fast! The mezcal provides a complex, smokey base. The ginger, honey and Benedictine, add a spicy sweetness. The cardamom and clove add an even greater depth that really works well with the other flavors.

Ginger, Honey and Benedictine have all been used as medicine. Cardamom has been used to treat infections in teeth and gums, to prevent and treat throat problems, lung congestion, and digestive disorders. It has also been used to break up kidney and gall stones. Cloves have also been used to treat kidney, liver and digestive problems. In Chinese medicine, cloves are used to fortify kidney yang.

As far as Mezcal goes, there is a Oaxacian saying regarding the drink: "para todo mal, mezcal y para todo bien también" (for everything bad, mezcal, and for everything good, too.)

I will not go so far as to call this drink medicinal, because it tastes way too good to actually be good for you.

It's probably not as bad for you as many other concoctions however, and might even do you some good if you are feeling under the weather and can't stand the thought of another toddy.

Neuva Jersey

Nueva Jersey Cocktail

When I saw the "Jacko's End" from Mayahuel in the NYC Tasting Table's Best Cocktails 2010 artice, I thought the combination of mezcal and Laird's 100 proof straight apple brandy was a really good idea.

When I tried it though, I thought the Benedictine was overpowering and looked for a variation to focus more on the combination of base spirits.

After some experimenting, I decided that giving the mezcal/apple brandy combo the "old fashioned" treatment was my favorite way to really experience these flavors.

I love ango, but it didn't work here. The Fee's Whiskey Barrel Aged really a nice spice and worked best for me.

If you have it, the elixir vegetal really works well here too. It's unique herbal qualities really add a nice complexity.


Nueva Jersey Cocktail

Ingredients

1 oz Del Maguey Mezcal
1 oz Laird's 100 proof bonded straight apple brandy
1-2 tsp blue agave syrup (depending on desired sweetnes)
1 dash Fee's Whiskey Bitters
1 dash Chartreuse Elixir Vegetal (option, but excellent)

Instructions

1) In an old fashioned glass, combine the agave syrup and bitters.

2) Add a few pieces of cracked ice and stir.


 

Cracking ice is fun!

3) Add Mezcal, apple brandy and a few more pieces of ice and stir again.

4) Optional garnish: lemon or orange twist. 

...or, you can put a 2" ice cube on top of the agave and bitters, add the spirits and stir, This leaves a nice layer of agave on the bottom as it just won't dissolve completely. When you've finished with the drink and the cube has melted down, it picks up the flavored agave syrup and makes an excellent treat to chew on.



...but chipped ice has it's own rewards too.



Spirit of Agave

SPIRIT OF AGAVE

Here's a modern recipe from Danny Meyer's "MixShakeStir" book that came out in 2008.

This one hails from the Union Square Cafe, and is honestly the only recipe that I took away from this book that was accessible to the home bartender, and looked enjoyable. This recipe is both.

Spirit of the Agave

1 oz silver tequila

1/2 oz reposado mezcal

1/2 oz Lillet blanc

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

1/2 oz agave nectar

1 lime wheel (optional)

"Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and place the monster ice cube in a rocks glass. Add the tequila, mezcal, Lillet, lime juice and agave nectar to the shaker and shake vigorously. Strain into the glass. Garnish with the lime wheel, if desired, and serve."