Created for Mixology Monday LXVI, "Green". MxMo is an quasi-monthly on-line cocktail creation event ... sponsored for October 2012 by Ed at Wordsmithing Pantagruel. Ed relaxed the challenge this month: create a cocktail incorporating green in some fashion: the color of an ingredient, a bottle's label, color of your socks while mixing. Almost anything.
The Last Word is certainly worthy of its status as a classic. Made as usual with Maraschino liqueur, herbal Chartreuse is skewed towards the Maraschino's funkiness. In the Bad Word, it is instead skewed toward the bitter. Gran Classico is a Campari-like amaro, with a bright character and an amber color.
If Gran Classico is unavailable, substitute Campari, but the lovely yellow-green color will be lost. This is certainly one of my more successful uses of amari to elevate already great cocktails to the sublime. If you like that sort of thing.
I love the combination of gran classico and chartreuse- great idea. I like maraschino, but anymore I tend to only want a barspoon or so in a cocktail. I really like this drink and I prefer it to the last word, but I found myself thinking about using rye and lemon instead of gin and lime next time. And then I realized I was only an ingredient away from the balsa airplane, which is still an all-time favorite.
This is a drink about which I have mixed feelings. On my first sip, I found the drink to be intensely bitter, with my first impulse to be "throw the damn thing out!" However, after several more sips, I found the drink still to be bitter, like most Nargoni-like drinks, but I found myself rather liking the drink. For those of you who read the prior comments, let me clarify several points: one person said the drink was too "unctuous," which means greasy or fatty, which this drink is not. Another person said it was sublime, which means awe-inspring, This drink is not that, either.
How would I describe it? Here are three ways: (1) A drink needing to get used to, (2) one that's intense tasting, and (3) one that's bitter, sour, or tart--take your pick. Now, am I saying don't bother with this drink? No! Not by any means. But I am saying the following: First, be prepared for a bitter and/or tart tasting drink. After all, consider the ingredients: Chartruese, lime, and gran classico. All say bitter/sour/tart. Second, like me, you may be inclined to say, "Yuck! This drink is terrible. I say, take a few more sips; you'll probably, as I did, end up rather liking the drink. Now, you're probably wondering how I rated the drink; Well, I rated it a _____.
