Time for a Drink: Toronto Cocktail
Let's start the weekend right—with a cocktail recipe from Paul Clarke (The Cocktail Chronicles). Need more than one? That kinda week, eh? Here you go. Cheers!
Some tastes take longer to acquire than others. Even those who have accustomed their palates to the robust flavors of whiskey and gin are left breathless by initial encounters with bitter Italian liqueurs. Campari is typically the first amari encountered, with its searing crispness lighting up drinks such as Negronis and Americanos. But even those who have accustomed themselves to Campari's sharp bitterness are often thrown for a loop when first sampling Fernet Branca.
Developed in the mid-19th century as a digestivo, Fernet Branca is Baroquely bitternwith a complex aroma and flavor rich with cardamom, gentian and peppermint. While it has a devoted fan base—San Francisco seems to live on the stuff—Fernet Branca has such an assertive flavor that it has no doubt frightened away plenty of novice drinkers.
Here’s a cocktail that helps the Fernet Branca-curious start off gently. Pairing the Italian bitter with the crispness of rye whiskey and softening the blow with sugar, the Toronto Cocktail keeps the Fernet from dominating the show. In the same flavor realm as the Boulevardier, the Toronto is a richly flavored, mildly bitter cocktail that also pairs perfectly with a crisp autumn evening.
About the author: Paul Clarke blogs about cocktails at The Cocktail Chronicles and writes regularly on spirits and cocktails for Imbibe magazine. He lives in Seattle, where he works as a writer and magazine editor.
Toronto Cocktail
Ingredients
2 ounces rye whiskey
1/4 ounce Fernet Branca
1/4 ounce simple syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Preparation
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass and fill with cracked ice. Stir for 20 seconds and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Squeeze a piece of orange peel over the drink and use as garnish.
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2 Comments:
Keep spreading the Toronto love! My goal is that this will one day be my Last Word!!!
As an added tip, slice a wide thin piece of orange zest and place it into the mixing glass while stirring, and add another orange zest as garnish when you finish.
JamieB at 8:23PM on 10/04/08
This is goodness. Are either of you involved with Oddfellows, on 10th? They have the Toronto on their cocktail menu. Tasty...
SteveB at 11:39PM on 01/11/09