Last week for Thursday Drink Night, the theme might have been in the wake of the previous one entitled Not Love, Just Lust for it was TDN: Bitter. The event was described as, “Because you know, sometimes, you just have to say ‘fuck the world’ and drink something dreadfully bitter.” With that, mixologists from across the country gathered in the chatroom to craft drinks using old classics like Fernet Branca and Averna and new classics like the Bittermens line. Here are a few of the drinks proffered that night:
Sean Mike of Scofflaw’s Den went with a Pousse-café designed as a shooter. With the adage “Red next to yellow kills a fellow. Red next to black is a friend to Jack” to sort out whether the snake you found was a very poisonous one or a safe one, Sean Mike aptly named this the Coral Snake.
Coral Snake
• 1/2 oz Campari
• 1/2 oz Strega
• 1/2 oz Averna
Layer in a shot glass: Campari first, Strega middle, Averna last. Shoot, chase with a bitter beer.
Cocktail Virgin/Slut’s Fred Yarm did a riff on the Fernet-laden Alcazer and made it into a Sour. With Fernet putting up a fight, the drink got dubbed after one of the famous pugilistic match ups of the last century (it also helped that he thought the classic was spelled Alacazer).
Ali-Frazier
• 1 1/2 oz Rye
• 1/2 oz Cointreau
• 1/2 oz Fernet Branca
• 1/2 oz Lemon Juice
Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.
Dan Chadwick of Kindred Cocktails database offered up a pair of drinks, but this one using a Bittermens liqueur was my favorite. I also liked the choice to stir a lemon juice-containing drink to keep the texture silky smooth.
Parfume Amere
• 1 oz Gin
• 1 oz Bittermens Amère Nouvelle
• 1 oz Punt e Mes
• 1/2oz Lemon Juice
• 2 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters
Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass.
