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Loved this with Kina L'Aero/ Lillet Blanc, Combier, and a nice french v.s.o.p. brandy. Skipped the sugar rim and it didn't need added syrup. ☆☆☆☆☆

Nice variation by Stephen Rowe at Dario in Minneapolis:
3/4oz each Brandy, Creole Shrub, Blanc Vermouth, and lemon. Served in a coupe with a large rock, no rim.
Highlights some different notes while staying in the framework. The rock-in-coupe presentation drank better than I thought it would.

Now with the confidence to try with orange-sugar rim. If you have time it’s definitely worth the faff and adds an extra dimension of both theatricality and sensory input - I left my sugar a little crystalline and it was almost like popping Candy. The drink itself with Hennessy vsop was surprisingly rich and mellow, freshened by the lemon twist. A genuine retro-vintage show stopper! Superb.

Enjoyed this but I too am thinking simple syrup in lieu of skip the sugar rim. If I understand correctly, a Blanc kina / Lillet mix is Difford's go to Kina Lillet substitute so I replaced this with Sacred English Amber Vermouth touted by some to be "equivalent" to Kina Lillet. Thoughts?

Followed GMG’s lead and short cut the sugar rim process - added 3.75ml rich syrup, 25ml Cocchi Americano, both lemon and orange twists.

Sidecar vibes all around... A dry version I never knew existed or thought was possible... I used Cocchi Americano in place of the combined measure of kina/Lillet... I may have added 2.5 ml of cane syrup in place of the sugared rim... Excellent.

A better sidecar. Moved even further away from Craddock's equal-parts recipe and upped the cognac (ABK6 VSOP) a bit more to 1.25 oz, used Cointreau and Kina L'Aero d'Or, Lillet Blanc. Garnished with a big lemon zest. Didn't sugar the rim, though that probably makes it even better. Truly excellent cocktail, only challenge is figuring out which name it should receive!

I liked it.