Three Bitters

I found this drink linked to the same article as The Getaway and was excited to try it, because I thought I had Cara Cara oranges. But when I sliced one open, I was quickly reminded that I'd sprung for the Moro blood oranges instead. No matter; they gave this drink a gorgeous hue. Also, it seemed like it might be a touch sweet, so I dropped the simple (I had Demerara, not Turbinado) to 3/4 ounce... Sadly, my chocolate mint died a couple months ago, so I skipped it. And I wasn't about to fire up a grill for one slice of orange, so I subbed a flamed Seville orange peel... I love the bittersweet-sour genre of drinks, and this is a great example.

Hmm.... an interesting drink here. Two questions: (1) Can you paraphrase the instruction in your own words please? (2) I'm wondering why the source says "shake the (3/4 oz) spirits with ice to make 1 oz", then neglects to tell you what to do with the juice and simple.

Yeah, I suppose I didn't read it that closely before pasting it in... I assume he meant "liquids" rather than "spirits," and I'm guessing he meant "adding 1 ounce of dilution". The original source for The Getaway had a similar (odd) dilution instruction... I've tweaked the instructions to be more clear.

What's weird to me is that they're so specific calling for the 3/4 oz (!?) of spirits to be diluted to 1 oz. What are you supposed to do with the juices and simple, put them in a glass and dump it down the sink?

Well, by my math, the pre-diluted spirits already add up to 1 1/4 oz (1/2 + 1/2 + 1/4), so that's why I interpreted it as 1 ounce of dilution. He said "dilute TO 1 ounce," but what he probably meant was "dilute BY 1 ounce." The omission of the non-alcoholic ingredients is rather puzzling, though... But unless told to do something specific with an ingredient (float, rinse, etc.), I tend to assume it all goes into the mixing glass.

I made 2 of these last night (couldn't let that other half orange go to waste!) and found it truly fascinating. The blood orange and lemon combine nicely, and the 3 amari play so well together that I couldn't pick any of them out until the finish, when the Fernet finally peeked out to say hello ('cause, y'know, it's Fernet).

Picked up some Cara Caras today, so I had to try this again... Wow! Almost a completely different drink. The citrus has a completely different character, and is much more grapefruit-like, reminding me of the Jasmine. The Fernet stays a little more in the background too... I'm honestly not sure which I like more (though the blood orange version had a much more pleasing color). Fortunately, it's not a very boozy drink, so I suppose I'll have to make 1 or 2 more each way to decide. ;)