Do you prefer aged or unaged Poire Williams in this drink? I wish I could find the Mozart Dry where I am, as this sounds rather interesting. Oh, and the twist in the drink as the garnish, correct?

Thanks,

Zachary

I use an unaged one (at least not barrel aged). Depending on the Poire Williams, you need quite a lot of syrup. Using an aged one might be interesting to get some of the vanilla flavors from another source. I like the way the unaged version looks like a clear spirit on ice, though

Are Mozart Chocolate Bitters not available in the U.S.? They've become sort of a standard for Chocolate Bitters here in Germany, although I often find them too intense which makes them difficult to use.
I'll try to experiment with some other chocolate bitters to see what they can do.

I always use the twist to get some of the oils on the drink's surface. Most recipes for Poire belle Hélène that I've seen so far call for a little lemon and I think it works very well with the vanilla. I also put the twist in the glass as garnish whenever I don't have any candied violets at hand.

Cheers,

Anton

Really nice drink.  In Meehan's Bartender manual, he notes an alternative presentation by Audrey Saunders (Pegu Club):

Put bitters-soaked demerara cube in bottom of chilled coupe

Place clear ice sphere on top (the picture shows the ball is the same depth as the coupe, making an interesting presentation) 

Pour 1 oz chilled cognac

Pour 2 oz chilled champagne

Float 0.25 oz green chartreuse

Nice flavor and the Okolehao stands out on the finish. Used fresh limes of the tree and had some lilikoi on the vine for passion fruit juice.

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Somehow, the name "Tooth & Nail" doesn't quite describe this drink, because it's overall taste is somewhat soft & sweet. Maybe that should be its name. I didn't have Macallan 12, but I did have Glenlivet 12, also a Speyside scotch. I also had Amer Picon (I purchased it by mail from England for a dear penny). But I would not rate this drink at 5.0, as one person did. After a lot thought and many sips, I rated the "Tooth & Tail" somewhere between 3.0 and 3.5.

Why? First, the whisky was overwhelmed by the Drambuie and (believe it or not) the Peach bitters. The Cynar probably had some, but not much, responsibility. The drink definitely has a sweetness to it, but it's not cloy. The Amer Picon and the peach bitters, and to some extent the Drambuie, were the bad boys here. Only a slight bitterness, from the Cynar no doubt.

My overall thoughts about the "Tooth & Tail?" It's a middling Scotch cocktail that needs some changes to bring out its better qualities. My first suggestion is to use only one dash of peach bitters. I would reduce the Dambuie slightly, and the Cynar, too. The Amer Picon --maybe make it two barspoons. And I would definitly up the Scotch to 2 1/2 oz. Now that I've suggested some significant changes, I will make them and see if there is any improvement in the "Tooth & Tail" cocktail. If not, then I leave it to others to improve this cocktail--if it can be improved. </p>

How does the Bols aged genever differ from the regular one in the clear bottle? Would this recipe work with the regular one?

Dan,

I have them both now - the Barrel Aged is new to Texas, and comes in a frosted bottle. It's less malty (which I think is the wood influence removing malt flavors like in Scotch), definitely spicy, but with my limited trials of the stuff, I think you need a lot of it to make an impact in a drink.

You could sub the regular Bols genever, but maybe add a barspoon of Bowmore to mimic the wood and spice.

Thanks,

Zachary

Kinda surprised at how much I dig this. The ingredients are not odd at all, but, I dunno, I guess I didn't expect them to come together like they do. It'll be in rotation for when I have yolks to use up.

Yes, this one is a keeper.  I accidentally used a dusting of nutmeg instead of ginger one time I was making one of these, and I think it is nicer than the ginger.