Bonus Sazerac!
I challenged myself to post 28 Sazeracs in 28 days for the month of February, but I’m not quite done. We’ve got a few bonus Sazeracs coming up that didn’t fit into the month of February.
I’ll try some different spirits, try some out at bars, and have some friends make them for me.
Piggerac
1 1/2 oz Calvados Reserve, Roger Groult
1/2 oz Pork Belly Fat Washed Wild Boar, er Turkey, Rye
1/4 oz “Orchard Syrup”*
Dash Peychaud’s
Stir and strain into a chilled absinthe rinsed glass. Twist a fat swath of freshly cut lemon peel over the drink and drop in or discard as you prefer.
One of the sort of ridiculous things about having a ridiculously cute dog, is that you often meet people at the dog park. Really, they just want to pat your dog, but for better or for worse, they also have to talk to you. For a while I’ve occasionally been getting sandwiches at Pal’s Takeaway in San Francisco. One morning I noticed that one of the men who worked there walked his dog in a park near my home. We had chatted about our dogs, but not really made the connection between non-dog walk life and dog-walk life. On one of my off days, when Monty and I were on the way to the beach, I stopped at Pal’s to get a Sandwich for lunch and said, “Hey, didn’t we meet the other day walking our dogs?” Struck up an acquaintance of sorts. Some time later, walking our dogs, we got to talking again and it turned out he was enormously fond of Rye Whiskey. A man after my own heart! Anyway, as we were jawing about booze, he mentioned he was curious about these meat infused whiskies he’d been hearing about. I said, “Yeah, cool, fat washing is fun, but I think you need a really smoky bacon. I tried it once with the Niman bacon and was pretty underwhelmed.” “You want bacon? I can get you bacon! I cure and smoke my own!”
A bit later, one night when I got home, there was a canning jar full of Fat Rendered from Cured Pork Belly and a Meyer Lemon sitting on our steps.
Obviously, I needed to revisit fat washing!
Keeping mind that he had said he really liked Rye Whiskey, I decided to forgo the usual Bourbon/Bacon axis and go with Wild Turkey Rye instead. I followed the P.D.T. instructions, adding a generous ounce of hot pork fat to the rye, infusing for a few hours, then freezing to separate. I also embellished, in my usual free association manner, adding a teaspoon of toasted caraway seeds to the Rye. As I was tasting the final product, I was pretty sure that all I was tasting was pork, no smoke. Interesting and very, very porky.
I brought the pork fat washed rye in to the most recent Savoy Cocktail Book night, where opinions varied. Generally, the opinions were split between, “I can’t even think of drinking that,” and, “This is wrong, but I can’t stop drinking it.”
Amusingly, Daniel Hyatt had been making drinks for a Cochon 555 Event in Napa that day, so for him, it was a little beyond the pale. “I’ve just had 10 plates of pork, and man, is this whiskey porky.” He did finish the glass, I believe, despite it probably not being in his best interest. Anyway, as we were chatting about what to do with the pork fat washed rye and he mentioned cutting it with Calvados to temper some of the pork-i-ness.
Letting that percolate for a couple days, I decided to give it a try in a Sazerac mixed with Calvados. But Calvados reminded me of Jennifer Colliau’s experiments with “Orchard Syrup“. I’d always meant to give an Orchard Syrup a try, so figured: Pork. Caraway. Apples. Why the Hell Not?
*Tiny Orchard Syrup
1 cup Apple Cider
1/8 Cup Natural Sugar
1 Clove
1/2 teaspoon Caraway Seed
Reduce to 1/4 Cup and strain out spices.
Huh, that orchard syrup IS really tasty, I’d pour it over ice cream, no problem. Nice viscosity, too. Pectins?
Anyway, should you dare drink a Piggerac, I hope you are imagining a perfectly browned whole suckling pig, apple in its mouth, crisp skin crackling as you cut, unctuous fat oozing through your fingers. Lift the haunch to your mouth. Go on, take a bite. You know you want to.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Savoy Tango Cocktail
1/2 Sloe Gin. (1 oz Plymouth Sloe Gin)
1/2 Applejack or Calvados. (1 oz Calvados Groult Reserve)
Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.
Note: This cocktail is a very great favourite at the Savoy Hotel, London, where it was invented.
That’s kind of a mind-blower, eh?
This simple combination of Sloe Gin and Apple Brandy is noted as, “a very great favourite at the Savoy Hotel”?
Well, first, if you don’t have a decent Sloe Gin, like the Plymouth, don’t even bother.
For my money, the complexity of a lightly aged Calvados, like this Roger Groult, adds a bit more character to the cocktail than an American Apple Brandy.
Still, a “great favorite”? Bartenders whipping out dozens of these puppies a night?
Well, OK, it is a very good name. And if you like Sloe Gin, which I understand the English do, this is an interesting flavor combination. I guess those two factors alone might go a long way towards explaining its alleged popularity.
Kind of tough, though, to taste this and wrap your mind around it being a “great favourite”.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Saucy Sue Cocktail.
1 Dash Apricot Brandy. (1 dash Rothman and Winter Orchard Apricot Liqueur)
1 Dash Absinthe. (1 dash Verte de Fougerolles Absinthe)
1/2 Calvados. (1 oz Calvados Groult Reserve)
1/2 Brandy. (1 oz Chateau Pellehaut Armagnac)
Stir well and squeeze orange peel on top.
Well, there’s an awful good reason why Sue is a bit Saucy: All she drinks is booze!
As much as I’d like to say this is awesome, it really doesn’t pass the test of, “Would I rather drink these spirits straight or in this cocktail?”
Maybe if I was using crap Brandy and bad Calvados, this might be an improvement. But with this Armagnac and this Calvados, this is just a sad waste of quality spirits. Not advised.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Royal Smile Cocktail.
The Juice of 1/4 Lemon. (1/2 oz Lemon Juice)
1/4 Grenadine. (1/2 oz Homeade Grenadine)
1/2 Applejack or Calvados. (1 oz Calvados Groult Reserve)
1/4 Dry Gin. (1/2 oz Krogstad Aquavit*)
Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.
Oh my goodness, how did that Aquavit get into this cocktail?
Thinking about Calvados, flavors, and cocktails, the anise-caraway medley of the Krogstad Aquavit lept to mind. And after making it with Aquavit, I didn’t even bother making it again with Gin. I think Gin just functions as filler in this cocktail, anyway, stretching the more expensive Calvados with neutral flavors.
Aquavit, however, combines very nicely with the vegetal aspects of the Calvados, and the Krogstad, with its strong Anise adds even more to the drink than a traditional aquavit would.
I really liked my variation on the Royal Smile. Give it a try and let me know if I’m crazy.
*The Krogstad Aquavit used in this cocktail was sent to me as a promotional gift by House Spirits, its producer.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Roulette Cocktail.
1/4 Swedish Punch. (1/2 oz Underhill-Lounge Homemade)
1/4 Bacardi Rum. (1/2 oz Montecristo White Rum)
1/2 Calvados. (1 oz Roger Groult Reserve Calvados)
Shake (I stirred) will and strain into cocktail glass.
Well, this is quite sweet. Still, it is kind of interesting as a vehicle for Calvados and Swedish Punch. It would not be a horrible after dinner drink. The Montecristo White seems to simply serve as filler here, not really contributing much, at least in the face of such strong flavors as the Calvados and Swedish Punch.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Prince’s Smile Cocktail.
1 Dash Lemon Juice.
1/4 Apricot Brandy. (1/2 oz Rothman and Winter Orchard Apricot)
1/4 Calvados or Apple Brandy. (1/2 oz Groult Calvados Reserve)
1/2 Dry Gin. (1 oz North Shore Distiller’s No. 6)
Shake (I stirred) well and strain into cocktail glass. Lemon Peel.
I’ve always maintained the the North Shore Distiller’s No. 6 is a great foil for apricot and lemon flavors. It does not disappoint here.
The Prince’s Smile bit like the a cross between the Dolly O’Dare and the Between the Sheets cocktails. As fond as I am of Apple Brandy, this might even be an improvement over either one of those two classics.
To counter the sweetness of the apricot liqueur, you might want to be a tad generous with that “dash” of lemon juice.
Note the swank new Japanese Yarai mixing glass, which I ordered from Cocktail Kingdom. Still trying to exactly get a handle on this puppy. It seems to have an incredible amount of thermal density, which resulted in some drinks being more dilute and less cold than I wanted. At this point, I really recommend pre-chilling this Mixing glasses, or it is going to suck a lot of cold out of your cocktail.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Princess Mary’s Pride Cocktail.
1/4 French Vermouth. (1/2 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth)
1/4 Dubonnet. (1/2 oz Dubonnet)
1/2 Calvados. (1 oz Groult Calvados Reserve)
Shake (I stirred) well and strain into cocktail glass.
Created by Harry Craddock on February 28, 1922, to mark the wedding celebrations of H.R.H Princess Mary.
Like the preceding Princess Mary, this was created to mark the wedding of H.R.H. Princess Mary. Nothing against Mr. McElhone’s cocktail, but this is about a zillion times better to me.
Being 2/3 aperitif wine, it is on the light side, but the flavorful Groult Calvados still pokes it’s head out, giving the drink a flavorful character.
Thoroughly enjoyable, this is one cocktail I suspect is better with Calvados than it would be with American Apple Brandy.
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Personality a La Roy Cocktail
1 Dash Angostura Bitters.
1/4 Hercules. (1/2 oz Underhill Hercules version 3)
1/4 Applejack or Calvados. (1/2 oz Calvados Groult Reserve)
1/2 Dry Gin. (1 oz North Shore Distiller’s No. 6)
Shake (I stirred) well as strain into cocktail glass.
Actually gotten pretty good response both to Underhill Hercules Version 3 and to this cocktail made with it. Not sure where to go from here. Expand the spice component? I think I could slightly enhance the bitter elements as long as I continue to skip Wormwood.
The name is a bit odd, but I have no idea who Roy might have been and what about his personality might have attracted the name of this cocktail?
Perhaps South African poet Roy Campbell? The time is about right for whatever fame he might have generated for himself in South Africa and England.
Here’s an amusing section from his wikipedia entry, circa 1930 or so:
“…moving in literary circles, he was initially on friendly terms with the Bloomsbury Group but then became very hostile to them; he declared that they were sexually promiscuous, snobbish, and anti-Christian. His wife’s lesbian affair with Vita Sackville-West, the lover of Virginia Woolf, was a contributing cause to his changed attitude.”
Oh Vita, with her long legs, wolfhounds, and gardens. Who could resist?
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Oom Paul Cocktail.
1 Dash Angostura Bitters.
1/2 Caperitif. (1 oz Dolin Blanc Vermouth)
1/2 Calvados. (1 oz Germain-Robin Apple Brandy)
Shake (I stirred) well and strain into cocktail glass.
I’ve struggled with various substitutions for “Caperitif” over the course of these cocktails, and I don’t know if it’s just that I really like Dolin Blanc, but it was a very interesting foil for the flavors of the Apple Brandy in this relatively simple cocktail.
Intrigued enough with the results, I remade it with Calvados Groult Reserve and enjoyed it even more. I’m not sure if I agree with one friend’s assertion that, “Calvados is always better,” but in this case it was definitely more interesting than the American Apple Brandy.
If you like Apple Brandies as much as I do, this is a great cocktail to become familiar with their character.
Another unusually named cocktail with Caperitif. I should know by now that pretty much any cocktail with some weird ass name and Caperitif is going to have something to do with the Anglo Boer Wars.
From the Wikipedia entry for “Paul Kruger“:
Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (10 October 1825 – 14 July 1904), better known as Paul Kruger and affectionately known as Oom Paul (Afrikaans: “Uncle Paul”) was State President of the South African Republic (Transvaal). He gained international renown as the face of Boer resistance against the British during the South African or Second Boer War (1899-1902).
More information here: “Who Was Paul Kruger”
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
Maiden’s Prayer Cocktail (No. 2*)
1/3 Kina Lillet. (3/4 oz Cocchi Americano)
1/3 Dry Gin. (3/4 oz North Shore Distiller’s No. 6)
1/6 Calvados. (1/2 of 3/4 oz Groult Calvados Réserve 3 years old)
1/6 Pricota. (1/2 of 3/4 oz Rothman & Winter Orchard Apricot)
Shake (I stirred) well and strain into cocktail glass.
*On the principle that if at first you don’t succeed, cry, cry again.
According to cocktaildb Pricota was, “Defunct but highly-respected proprietary brand of English apricot-flavored brandy liqueur. Produced by Humphrey Taylor & Co. of London in the late 18th and 19th centuries,” so we’ll use the highly respected R&W Orchard Apricot instead.
Again, even though it is a modern gin, I’ve previously found that the North Shore No. 6 works well with apricot flavors, so I’ve deployed it here.
My bottle of Cocchi Aperitivo Americano, though it has served me well, is nearing a state of tragic emptiness. Here’s hoping someone soon manages to convince the TTB to allow it back into the country.
I’ve found pleasure in the prayers of both of these Maidens and would be hard pressed to pick a favorite. The sweet-tart No. 1 or the bitter-sweet No. 2.
Both are well balanced, witty, and sophisticated young ladies, err… cocktails!
Chuckle, while I appreciate the bloom of sweet-tart youth, I guess I have come to a point in my life where some bitter-sweet experience is more appealing. In cocktails, that is. Right?
This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the cocktails in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, Zed.
