MxMo LXV: Equal Parts—Arithmetic Leisure

Very warm thanks to Frederic of Cocktail Virgin Slut for both taking over Mixology Monday and for being this month’s host. And most of all, I’d like to thank him for eliminating the need to rack my tipsy brain trying to remember how much was measured for each ingredient in the final version of my drink because Frederic’s theme is equal parts. (Whether I can pour equal parts by the end of the evening is another story.)



Arithmetic Leisure

• 1 oz Dry Rye Gin
• 1 oz Punt e Mes
• 1 oz Campari
• 1 oz fresh orange juice

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled wine glass. Add fresh ice.
SOURCE: ROWEN, FOGGED IN LOUNGE

This aperitif cocktail is built around the Dry Rye Gin from St. George Spirits, the fruit notes from the other ingredients balancing the rye, juniper and peppercorns, and the bitter botanicals all coming together as a whole.

Calling All Manhattans: WDM

For those just arriving at this cocktail party, I’m blogging Manhattan recipes folks send in as well as some of the more unusual variations and sundry bits of Manhattanalia.

And the one below just goes to show that this Manhattan Cocktail party is open to all, whether you blog drinks or not. This is the first time I’ve heard from WDM—at least that I’m aware of—and I thoroughly enjoyed this Punt e Mes edition.



Manhattan

• 2 oz Rittenhouse Bonded
• 1 oz Punt e Mes
• 3 – 4 dashes Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Appropriate cherry garnish.
SOURCE: WDM

Rich but bright enough to be recognizable as a Manhattan. I’ve made similar many times myself, being a major Punt e Mes fan.

Manhattan Variations: Coney Island

I was looking for distinctive riffs on the immortal Manhattan and spotted this chocolate version, an original by Frederic at Cocktail Virgin Slut. It’s like a cross between a Manhattan and one of those forbidden ice cream things you buy on Surf Avenue thinking you really shouldn’t but it’s like some kind of twisted heaven. It’s even got the little malty thing like the cone or the wafers or whatever. And it tastes more and more like a Manhattan and less like a kiddy ride as you get to the bottom—until you pop the red cherry.



Coney Island

• 2 oz Old Overholt
• 1/2 oz Punt e Mes
• 1/2 crème de cacao (Marie Brizard)
• 1 dash Angostura Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Maraschino cherry.
SOURCE: FREDERIC, COCKTAIL VIRGIN SLUT

Stagecoach

I dunno—I feel like I should expand my range of garnishes. I’m pretty much reduced to twists, cherries and lime shells these days, if anything at all.

So that said, here for your delectation is another plain brown cocktail. It’s citric but aromatic too, a combination I like more and more. There’s some Punt e Mes, which gets together with the other elements in a way that suggests lemon oil or lemongrass, even though there’s none in there. So it tastes brighter than it looks. Maybe when I make this again, I’ll go find a shaft of fresh lemongrass and stick a piece of it in the drink to dress it up a little.

Stagecoach

• 1 1/2 oz reposado tequila
• 3/4 oz Punt e Mes
• 1/2 oz lime juice
• 2 dashes Fee Bros Aztec Chocolate Bitters
• 1 – 2 dashes Angostura Orange Bitters
• 1/4 oz amber agave nectar

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
SOURCE: ROWEN, FOGGED IN LOUNGE

The flavor sort of reminds me of oxidized copper too. (Remember being told as a kid not to put pennies in your mouth? I must not have paid too much attention.)

Hanky Panky

For Friday the 13th, here’s one that has become a standby here at the Fogged In Lounge, Ada Coleman’s Hanky Panky. It’s a Savoy Cocktail so I’ll let Erik tell the story. I like the Hanky Panky with Punt e Mes in place of regular sweet vermouth, though if made that way following the printed formula, it becomes too heavy for me.



Hanky Panky (Punt e Mes)

• 2 oz London dry gin
• 1 oz Punt e Mes
• 1/2 tsp Fernet-Branca

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Orange twist.
SOURCE: ADAPTED FROM THE SAVOY COCKTAIL BOOK

Red Hook

I first found the Red Hook a few years ago in a great post by Paul Clarke. Named for an area of my old hometown, Brooklyn, New York, this rye cocktail is an appropriately edgy and solid relative of the Brooklyn and the Manhattan. I’ve become very fond of it and keep it in regular rotation, adding a lemon twist to brighten things up and compliment the rye.



Red Hook

• 2 oz rye
• 1/2 oz Punt e Mes
• 1/4 oz maraschino

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Deploy the twist.

Source: adapted from a recipe posted by Paul Clarke, The Cocktail Chronicles