French Manhattan
You’ve all had my Classic Manhattan and are, by this point, hopefully well-versed in decent bourbon or rye selection. So now we put a small twist on my all-time favorite cocktail (a more subtle twist than straight up ordering a Sazerac). So what, you might ask, makes a Manhattan “French?” A traditional 1860s-style Manhattan is typically made with rye whiskey though more modern tastes frequently prefer bourbon. A French Manhattan uses a cognac base and emphasizes citrus with the gentle addition of Grand Marnier or Cointreau. It is a smoother cocktail – substantially smoother than a Rye Manhattan – and might be more agreeable who those whose tastes do not naturally gravitate towards the darker spirits. As one additional note, a friend recently introduced me to Armagnac, a species of brandy distilled in the Gascony region of France. It would likely make an excellent addendum to a French Manhattan evening.
what you need
1 1/2 oz Cognac of choice (for entry level, I recommend Courvoisier, though my Christmas present this year was a bottle of D’USSÉ Essential and it is out of this world!)
1/2 oz Grand Marnier
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (I recommend Dolin)
3 dashes Black Walnut bitters or bitters or choice
Garnish: orange peel, quarter orange slide, and/or cocktail cherry.
how to make it
Place a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker and add all ingredients minus the garnish.
Let sit for 60 second and then stir well. Do not shake.
Strain cocktail into cocktail glass and add garnish, assembled on a toothpick.
Serve chilled. You may want to chill your glasses ahead of time.
Bourbon and Blood
🍊 I decided to experiment with a trendy, spooky cocktail. Naturally, I added my own twist by pulling out the blow torch and smoking the crap out of half my kitchen. I also dimmed the original recipe slightly so it was less sweet because Solerno can be a syrup-y addition to any cocktail. What remains is a still-sweet, slightly smoky, herbaceous, autumn cocktail.
Cherry Blossom Cocktail
I have recently mastered a new go-to spring mocktail leveraging one of my all-time favorite cocktail ingredients: Damask Rose Water. The result is that this indulgence comes in two forms: cocktail and mocktail. This, my friends, is springtime in a glass. If you need to freshen up, leave the gin. If you’re down, 1oz of Bo & Ivy has you covered.
City of Jewels Sidecar
This is a unique, festive twist on a class Sidecar cocktail, which makes it great for the holidays. We incorporate the lavish blood orange to elevate the flavors. A classic Sidecar contains cognac, orange liquor, and lemon juice. Here, we substitute blood orange juice for lemon juice and use Solerno blood orange liquor instead of Cointreau.
Old Fashioned
For those of you who have tried my Smoked Old Fashioned, it occurred to me the other day that I hadn’t made it simple for everyone by just including a base Old Fashioned recipe. The Old Fashioned is one of the most quintessential cocktails, like the Manhattan or the Sazerac (my other two favorites). The Old Fashioned is the sweetest of the three and the most fruit-forward. It is also the least strong owing in part to the fact that it is served over a large ice cube.
Aperol Spritz
I am interrupting your regularly-scheduled programming here on this Easter weekend to declare Spring officially arrived here in Northern Virginia. And what better way to welcome and celebrate it than with a quintessentially-summer cocktail? (I know, wishful thinking at it’s best). So in honor of my lovely niece-in-law and nephew, I give you the Aperol Spritz, which I am now fully convinced is only complete alongside homemade pizza. Still working on the pizza but, for now, enjoy the drink!
