Bénédictine is really sweet with some herbal notes, so you’re right: not peaty! I used a blended scotch with medium smoky notes, but I think you have a lot of flexibility with scotches here to get different flavors.
I haven’t run out yet, so I don’t have any first-hand suggestions! But I found this article to be interesting, I think I originally found it after I read a times article about the monks cutting back production. I’d be curious to hear how any of them are if people have tried!
https://www.liquor.com/chartreuse-substitutes-cocktails-8347632
Yes! That’s a great one.
Good call out, I should have mentioned the garnish; I decorate with that thinly sliced lime round, just because I think it’s cute! It’s not big enough to squeeze or really change the acidity of the drink, it’s just cut super thin so it floats on top.
If we’re looking for egg white and no lemon juice, I’d go for a Pisco sour!
Mine is from before the monks got lazy!
But I hear your pain on the annoyingly tall bottle! There’s always one that doesn’t fit in the spot it’s should, and then breaks the whole system of organization. For me it was Luxardo maraschino liqueur; that thing is tall!
The redesigned packaging took nearly four years to develop
That’s… that’s quite a lot. I wonder what sort of wild iterations took up four years.
Cute mug!
I’m always feel like I have trouble pairing cocktails with Asian food, and this list has some really intriguing ideas. Thanks for the post!
This is one I had at an Italian restaurant once and was delighted by. It’s basically a more herbaceous take on a French 75, what’s not to like?
Shake the gin, syrup, and lemon juice with ice and strain into the glass. Top with Prosecco. Garnish with a sprig of thyme.
Named after the tallest single-drop waterfall in the world, in Guyana, this drink is my favorite tiki-style cocktail of all time. I got the recipe from Smuggler’s Cove. It’s easy drinking and super flavorful. Give it a shot!
Add the liquid ingredients to the glass and fill three-quarters with ice. Swizzle, then top with more ice. Garnish with a mint sprig and swizzle stick.
Review from my partner: “refreshing! I could drink these all night!” I concur! I got this recipe from Death & Co, and the only modification was replacing the egg white with aquafaba. And one fewer cherry; there’s only so many of those I can eat 😂
Dry shake all the ingredients, then shake again with ice. Double strain over 1 large ice cube, and garnish with the cherries on a cocktail pick.
This one is another fall themed one I found for Apple brandy, the Mayor Rock, from Riffle bar in Portland. Delicious!
Build ingredients together in a rocks glass. Add ice and stir until chilled. Garnish with an orange peel.
Here is Fernando, from Speakeasy (the Employee’s Only bar owners’ book). We had some sickness in the family and this fernet-forward drink was perfect to slap the sickness out of them (that’s how it works, right?)
Stir with ice, and garnish with an expressed sprig of mint.
I was recently at a party in Vermont where we pressed apple cider, so I was casting about for cocktail-with-cider ideas, and found this one from liquor.com: the Autumn Apple. It’s very approachable and refreshing, though I downed the honey and upped the bitters to make it a little more complex (in my opinion). It got good reviews from my family; I got asked for seconds!
Shake with ice, strain into a glass, and garnish with a lemon twist.
A nice, earthy, aperitif for the fall! From ALEX&NDER, in Louisville.
Stir with ice and garnish with a cherry.
A friend had this drink at a long-forgotten bar in Brooklyn and recreated it. The Fernet and maple go nicely together, and in total it ends up being quite refreshing.
Shake ingredients (except ginger beer) with ice. Strain into a collins glass, top with ginger beer, and garnish with an orange peel.
This one’s from Death & Co, and it’s both a little tart and a little sweet, with a delightful effervescence.
Shake all the ingredients (except the champagne) with ice, then strain into the flute. Top with the champagne. Honey syrup is equal parts honey and water, combined.
This is a nice, light, summer-y drink, by Jörg Krause.
Build the drink over ice in a glass, stir, and decorate with the grapefruit slice.
Just a little bloody bar I set up for a brunch party. I use the recipe from the Employee’s Only book, Speakeasy, and it usually goes over well. I adapted it to 32 oz of tomato juice (which is a common size where I shop), so lots of the quantities are a little weird. But it’s a very forgiving recipe, so I don’t stress that!
Stir all ingredients in a large food-safe container until well combined. Refrigerate overnight. Stir again before using.
This one is fun! The charred grapefruit pairs well with the smokiness of the mezcal, and it’s very pretty. You can do it in a rocks glass with the soda, but I chose to do it in a coupe and skip the bubbles. I also used aquafaba instead of egg since my partner is vegan.
Use an open flame from your gas stove (or kitchen torch, or broiler) and a pair of tongs to char a half a grapefruit, and a few additional slices for garnish. Juice the charred half-grapefruit. Pour the mezcal, grapefruit juice, simple syrup, egg white and bitters into an empty cocktail shaker. Dry shake, then shake with ice. Strain into a coupe, then top with club soda. Garnish with a charred grapefruit slice.
I love how this is literally a topographic map!