Istanbul (Not Constantinople)

• 1.5 oz. Greek gin (Grace)
• 0.5 oz. Raki (Yenu)
• 0.5 oz. Fernet Menta
• 0.25 oz. apricot liqueur (Rothman and Winter)
• 0.25 oz. cinnamon syrup
• 0.25 oz. lemon juice
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 dash Angostura Orange bitters

Shake with ice and strain into glass.

I was gifted some raki from a Turkish colleague, so played with some Greek and Turkish ingredients for this tipple, with apricot, cinnamon and mint. Lots of experimentation to get to the final mix, but I love this end result.

The name of course is from the song, made known to me at least through They Might Be Giants. The city changed hands a few times, so I felt captured the composite of ingredients. Have a drink. Or two. And that’s nobody’s business but the Turks.

Emerald Forest

• 2.0 oz. London Dry gin (London #1 Blue Gin)
• 0.5 oz. Cocchi Americano
• 0.25 oz. Yellow Chartreuse
• 0.25 oz. Douglas Fir brandy
• dash of Virtue Alpine Sage bitters

Stir with ice and strain into coupe.

I had the blue gin and wanted to make some jewel hued concoction., so I added the Yellow Chartreuse to create a shade of green, further modified by the Cocchi and fir brandy. Obviously it wasn’t all for color, as the herbaceousness brought things together, with the bitters taming some of the sweetness.

I honestly don’t know about the name. Emerald always makes me think of green and Oz, but I went with Forest over City due to the brandy. I guess there’s a movie with this same title from the 80s that I don’t remember at all.

Sometimes a drink is just a drink and a name is just a name. And you ask for it by name and drink it for what it is. And it all works out.

Hainuwele

• 1.5 oz. aged rum (Don Q Gran Añejo)
• 0 75 oz. Meletti
• 0.5 oz. Clement Mahina Coconut Rhum Liqueur
• 0.25 oz. lemon juice
• 0.125 oz. crème de menthe (Tempus Fugit)
• dash of Angostura bitters

Shake with ice and strain into coupe.

Coconut and mint were the catalyst here. I wanted lots of bitter to counter the sweetness, so went for an amaro in Meletti, bolstered by Angostura. For acid I added the lemon. The Don Q made a nice base, but honestly I took it off my shelf in order to finish the bottle.

The name comes from The Coconut Girl creation myth from Indonesia. It’s a trip, so I encourage you to look it up. But it’s only the coconut reference I was looking for. Google leads you down some fascinating paths. Just have a nice drink in your hand as you go down the rabbit hole.

Il Gioiello

• 2.0 oz. Truffle Gin (Dioniso)
• 0.5 oz. Benedictine
• 0.5 oz. dry vermouth
• dash of mole bitters

Stir with ice and strain into coupe. Garnish with black truffle, if you have it. I did not.

My wife and I recently took our 20th anniversary in Italy, visiting Venice. There I found a truffle store that was offering a truffle gin. This gin on the nose is pure truffle. I fell in love. It is there at the initial taste, but isn’t overwhelming.

The picture here includes a coaster I bought there, a lace doily from Burano, and a mask ornament my parents got me on their previous trip.

The name is Italian for a jewel, which is a translation of Bijou, which is what this cocktail is based on. Truffle Gin here replaces London Dry, with mole bitters also replacing orange bitters.

Aren’t we fancy with our truffle, pig-rooted truffle gin? Saluti!

Louisiane and Maine

• 2.0 oz. Rye
• 0.5 oz. Sweet Vermouth
• 0.25 oz. Benedictine
• 0.25 oz. Cherry Heering
• dash of Peychaud’s bitters
• dash of Angostura bitters
• dash of absinthe

Stir with ice and strain into glass.

Meld of two of my favorite (and similar) drinks, Remember the Maine and A La Louisiane cocktails, which only differ by using either Benedictine or Cherry Heering. Here I’ve used both, and lessened the sweet vermouth.

The name, then, is obvious, though for me it sounds like an intersection of streets, not drinks, or states. An intersection it is, so I like it. And I’ll be on that corner raising a glass.

All Quinine on the Western Front

• 1.5 oz. French gin (Generous)
• 0.75 oz. Yellow Chartreuse
• 0.75 oz. Cocchi Americano
• 0.25 oz. Maurin Quina
• dash of lemon bitters

Stir with ice and strain into glass.

I was just looking for a gin and Chartreuse drink. Maurin Quina brought the brightness I needed.

Obviously the name comes from the Maurin Quina. I moved to a French gin just to match the theme. Santé!

The Rum Will Come Out Amaro

• 1.0 oz. Probitas rum
• 0.5 oz. Barcardi 8
• 0.5 oz. Smith & Cross overproof
• 0.5 oz. Amaro Brovo 14
• 0.5 oz. passion fruit liqueur (Giffard)
• 0.25 oz. lemon juice
• dash of Angostura bitters
• dash of Angostura Orange bitters

Shake with ice then strain into glass.

I built this around the amaro. I used a blended base of rums I felt suited. The Probitas has an underlying vanilla that I like to match with the passion fruit, and for acid counterbalance I chose lemon. Even though the amaro provides bitter, I felt it needed a boost from the two Angosturas.

I’ve been a little overreliant on puns for names recently, but this one is perfect and I wouldn’t change it. I was close to adding a red wig to the skull for the picture, but thankfully edited myself in the end. Now stick out your chin, and grin, and DRINK!

The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far from the Walnut Tree

• 1.5 oz. Apple brandy (Laird’s bonded)
• 0.75 oz. Rothman & Winter Orchard Pear liqueur
• 0.5 oz. Cardamaro
• 0.25 oz. walnut liqueur (Nux Alpina)
• dash of orange bitters

Stir with ice then strain into glass.

I started with the Nux Alpina and it just naturally paired with the Laird’s. A little bit of sweet pear and then Cardamaro for some brightness nearly completed it, with the bitters rounding it out.

Does the name need an explanation? Not really. Just sip and enjoy.

Logan’s Rum

• 2.0 oz. Medford rum
• 0.75 oz. loganberry liqueur
• 0.25 oz. Bravo Amaro #14
• 2 dashes mole bitters
• 2 dashes absinthe

Stir with ice then strain into coupe.

Picked up the loganberry liqueur (have I ever had a loganberry?) and paired it with some rum. It definitely needed some bitter from the amaro and the mole bitters. The absinthe added a nice bright anise bite.

Loganberry. Rum. The name was a given.

Rum Plum Tugger

• 1.5 oz. Mt. Gay Eclipse rum
• 0.5 oz. Plantation O.F.D. rum
• 0.5 oz. Averell Damsom Plum liqueur
• 0.5 oz. Amaro Nonino
• 0.25 oz. vanilla syrup

Stir with ice and strain into coupe.

I’ve had the damsom plum for a while (very similar to sloe gin) and wanted to find something for it. Gin is what I usually reach for, so tried rum in this case. The Eclipse is a nice base, but I wanted more bite and grabbed the overproof Plantation. The vanilla deepened the sweet tartness of the plum, and the bitter amaro was necessary for balance. The tartness of the liqueur meant no citrus was needed in addition.

The name came from my daughter almost immediately when I mentioned the ingredients, and I thank her for it. And there’s no doing anything about it.