Bitter Tears
Stir, strain, cocktail glass or coupe, garnish with grapefruit peel.
- Barefoot in the Dark — Blended Scotch, Campari, Swedish Punsch, Islay Scotch, Cynar, Orange peel
- The Black Rider — Brandy, Mezcal, Cynar
- High Water — Blended Scotch, Cynar, Islay Scotch, Tawny port, Bitters
- Various Positions — Rye, Mezcal, Sloe gin, Cynar, Peychaud's Bitters, Absinthe, Lemon peel
- Tom Joad — Rye, Mezcal, Cynar, Orange peel
4.5 out of 5, but bumping to 5 because it is so surprising and different. The botanicals (primarily caraway) of the Linie and the peat of the Laphroaig work with the gentian in the Cocchi Americano to create an engaging bittersweet flavor that is hard to describe until you taste it. It reminds me of some citrusy Suze/Aveze/Salers cocktails with a bitter lemon/grapefruit pithiness, yet having the broader wine base of Cocchi Americano and a modest peat contribution that somehow incorporates seamlessly with the rest. The orange liqueur (I used Cointreau) provides substantial sweetness to offset the more bitter an peaty notes.