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Originally served in a chilled old-fashioned glass without ice but I prefer this cocktail with the dilution that comes with ice. Don't worry if you don't...
Substituted Cyanar with Fernet Branca (one of my absolutely favorite cocktail ingredients). It counters the sweetness well and everything plays well together. A new favorite - especially in the 3 (+bitters) ingredients category.
This bourbon/cynar ration is really interesting, I didn't expect it to combine so well. I didn't add sugar syrup as suggested by others here. I used angostura cocoa bitters and found it better to go a few extra than the 4 suggested dashes.
On my second one I wanted to try adding a little funkyness so I added a barspoon of grappa and the result was good.
I don't find it too sweet so much as the cynar plus bourbon and chocolate don't quite work together for me, unfortunate as cynar is one of my favorite amaros.
Tried before, it was excellent. This time around (used a 99 proof bourbon) it was a bit sweet. My rich syrup has been covered, in the fridge, for a while so perhaps evaporation has concentrated it. A strong dash of chocolate bitters completely corrected the balance. Certainly served with ice. ♡
I completely agree, a splash of maple syrup in place of the simple makes for a much more interesting drink. This was a favorite as written, even better with maple syrup.
This is a good drink! Not too sweet for me using Woodford Reserve. Took Garrett's advice with some orange oils on top and highly recommend. Ends with that distinctive Cynar bitterness. As the drink dilutes, the cocoa notes increase.
The chocolate bitters make this - next time I'll take Garrett's suggestion and zooz a little orange zest over the top. Pretty good complex mix of flavours that work well together.
Just tried this and I'm completely bemused by the suggestions below that it's "too sweet". Not puckeringly dry, but make it as per the recipe and it's excellent, well-balanced and satisfying. If the chocolate bitters are omitted then I'm sure you'll get a sweeter concoction, but that's not the drink, is it?
Perfect as an aperitif. Used only 1/2 sugar syrup, and still found it a bit sweet. Would do again without the sugar syrup and maybe a dash of cold water.