Curated slightly to clarify which Fee bitters and adjust attribution.

This is more than slightly splendid. I'm waiting on a bottle of Rittenhouse which seems to have vanished into the aether, so I subbed Jim Beam No 12 (100 proof). The drink worked really well, with the other ingredients calming down the 'squashed ants' bourbon character. Definitely a keeper, and I'll try it again when/if the Rittenhouse appears.

This is really quite good. I made a second with a little Cynar in with the vermouth to try and amp up the vegetal side, so if you'd be interested in that, it wotks.

Curated to make attribution more specific, elaborate on instructions, and add some spice options.

I used a different fino and another, organic brand of chocolate bitters, otherwise all ingredients specified. It's tasty and interesting. There's something just a bit incongruous about the mix. The scent of orange and chocolate is delightful, however. 4/5.

Mahastew,

Taking a guess here, it's that the Fino is too dry for the other ingredients - it 'leans out" the rich Bourbon, and adds saline/vinyl notes that are what you're finding odd. If you have some, try a dry Oloroso, which should be more rich and woody to pair with the Bourbon.

Thanks,

Zachary

Wow, "saline" is a good call, I believe.

Thanks. I love Fino sherries - I mean, how can you not love a wine that grows in soil like this?

Zachary

This is obviously before the invention of shaking a cocktail.  Yikes.

Pusser's version: 4 oz pineapple juice, 2 oz Pusser’s rum, 1 oz orange juice, 1 oz cream of coconut

Added garnishes, instructions, and attribution link.

Updated with the corrected authentic recipe. The previous recipe was guesswork and had too much lemon, not enough orgeat, not enough orange bitters, and included club soda. The drink should be built and swizzled to create dilution. I do think a bit of seltzer was nice, but I shook the drink to prevent excess dilution from melting.

This is a fabulous drink, and a great introduction to Fernet. I removed club soda, which is not in the authentic recipe. If one desires club soda, you might note it in the comments section of your Cocktail Book entry.

I need to try this recipe again when I have the proper ingredients. I used Torani almond syrup, and the artificial almond extract flavor is getting in the way. Guess it is time to make my own. Also, I have Regan's orange bitters- I would love to know if they are similar to the Angostura Orange, or if it would be reasonable to have both. But even with the low quality orgeat, I find this strangely addicting.

First, the KC orgeat recipe is awesome (I should know... it's my take on fxcuisine's version). It's also a great way to meet cocktail-minded friends: the recipe makes 3 liters of orgeat, so you can make two other people insanely happy.

I think it's worth picking up both Regans' and Ango orange - Regans' is like orange breathmint - it has a lighter orange aroma and a green freshness to it. Ango orange is more juicy, like the peel of an incredibly beautiful orange. 

You are right in saying this is an addicting drink, though! 

Thanks,

Zachary

I made this again with homemade orgeat, and it is just sublime. I rounded up a bit on the orgeat, and down on the angostura orange bitters, and it really was just perfect.

So, this may be my favorite, most frequently made cocktail (at least in the top few). I think the best version increases the orgeat (homemade) to 1.5 oz and decreases the orange bitters to a few dashes.

Made this with homemade falernum and orgeat (Kevin Liu's recipe, which takes all of two minutes and is delicious), dropping the orange bitters to a few dashes per the suggestions here. I ended up wanting more almond flavor so I upped the orgeat by a half ounce per christina in tacoma's suggestion and still found it balanced (my orgeat's not too sweet). Much more accessible than I expected; tart and lemony and spicy and light, with the menthol-y herbaceousness of the Fernet but basically none of the bitterness. I didn't know Fernet could be so friendly.

Made this last night; it's going in my top-10! Amazingly delicious - plus it takes enough of the bitter edge off the Fernet that I think it might make for a great drink to introduce Fernet to Fernet-virgins. ;)

Curated to provide another instruction, detail on bitters, and another source reference.