A great riff on the Paper Plane if you want something jucier to quench your thirst on a hot day
Cardboard Plane
1 oz. bourbon (regular Four Roses is great, i especially love it with 1792)
0.75 oz. Cointreau
0.5 oz. Amaro Meletti
0.75 oz. lemon juice
0.5 oz. grapefruit juice
Add all ingredients to a tin and shake hard on ice. Double strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice and garnish with a grapefruit peel. (I prefer it with 2 drops of 4:1 saline)
Another Mr. Potato Head variation: Amrut Fusion, lemon, Bigallet China-China, and Ramazzotti. It came out both darker and dryer, but also a bit more complex, and with very light smoke on the swallow. I have yet to apply thus formula in a way that wasn't at the very least pleasant and drinkable.
To be honest when I first try it I hadn't nonino available and used Averna. I loved it. Then I try it with nonino and it was so - so . For me it totally needs to tone down the lemon by at least 5ml if one use Nonino.
50/50 mix of Wild Turkey 101 & 81 bourbon works really well for this; good balance of sweet, sour, & bitter, with the richness of the bourbon and amaro lying underneath. Makes you want to keep going back for another sip.
The cocktail is perfect 'as is'. I've made variations using Barolo Chinato as a substitute for the Amaro Nonion, and using Yuzu juice and Chinola (b/c I don't know chit from Chinola haha) as a lemon juice substitute. Both are very very good.
Today's version wentva bit off script: it was made with High West Campfire (a mix of bourbon, rye, and peated Scotch); Aperitivo Nonino; Aachener Domliqueur (a spiced liqueur from Germany) in lieu of Amaro Nonino; and of course lemon juice. This came out great - tart, spiced, with complexity from the Aperitivo, and just a hint of smoke on the swallow.
I’ve had a fantastic variation dubbed a Pearoplane, adding in some pear purée. The result is obviously much sweeter, but the herbal and bitter notes still come through in an old fashioned pear drop candy flavour
I occasionally replace bourbon with a quality amber rum and some have called it a Paper Boat. Looking up Paper Boat there seem to be several variations.
I've heard of others doing the same and will add this version to Difford's Guide. I've also seen a Paper Boat made into a long drink, but that seems too much of a stretch from the Paper Plane.
Bourbon, Campari, Aperol, and lemon juice make a fine Paper Plane! Some folks on the west coast are replacing the lemon with lime, calling it Ruby Sippers.
Made this tonight with Amaro Nonino which I purchased today just to make this and used Aperol as suggested. I found it a bit tart so next time will try with 1/2 oz. lemon (or maybe 3/4 oz. Myer lemon?) and report back.
Another iteration here, as I switched Aperol for Aperitivo Nonino. This decreases the bitterness slightly, but adds more layers of flavor as I find Aperitivo Nonino more complex than Aperol. This version benefits from a less assertive bourbon, though, to let the Aperitivo come through. I went with Wild Turkey Longbranch today.
I ran out of Aperol, and because substituting Campari makes it quite tart I added a dash of Benedictine. Wow, that made it better than the original. It brings in the sweetness while also adding even more herbal intrigue than the Nonino alone.
Sort of a Boulevardier Sour. So ultimately, perhaps, another noble offspring of that fecund king, the Negroni. Whatever, we love it late at night, cuddled up watching a movie.
Quite dry and tart so I adapted it to the following with great results:
• 1 1/4 oz (37.5 mL) Four roses bourbon
• 1 oz (30 mL) Montenegro amaro
• 1 oz (30 mL) Aperol
• 2/3 oz (20 mL) Lemon juice
• 3 drops of 20% saline solution
Tried this several times, getting a high proof base spirit made the difference- went with Rittenhouse rye this evening. Outstanding and five stars well deserved.
Yes you really have to balance the sweet/sour here. Likewise with a last word. I add half the suggested amount to the shaker, taste, then progressively add more to get optimal balance.
Love seeing how everyone has tried this with different amari. Instead I switched out the aperitivo - didn’t have Aperol (which I’m not all that fond of, too sweet) so I used our local aperitivo from the Old Poison Distillery right here in Leith. The result is excellent, if not as pretty to look at as the original. But arguably much more interesting!
Made a mezcal version, like a division bell but not.. Paper Bell maybe? Whatever it's called, it's a nice one! Three favourite drinks just a substitute or two apart from one another. Last word riffs rule.
Macfarlane's Reserve KT Bourbon | Am Noni | Aperol | Super Lemon Juice _____________ built with -33% Super lemon juice than spec. too acidic for me. could be a testimony against super lemon juice, possibly? or, this kinda flat dimensionless bourbon i picked up? not sure.
Bought a bottle of Nonino purely to make this and very glad I did. A definite improvement on the Averna I had previously been using. Think this will become a real favourite.
0.75 oz Hendrick’s Gin
0.75 oz Drillaud Elderflower Liqueur
0.75 oz Amaro Nonino Quintessentia
0.75 oz fresh Lemon juice
Shake hard, double strain, serve up