Chris Brislawn

Lustau says their East India solera is a blend of PX and oloroso so you're in the ballpark but a bit on the dry side, which is fine; I upped the anejo (El Tesoro since I didn't have Patron) to 1.75 oz to dry it out a bit. A very good, complex cocktail with strong cocoa notes and a bit of bite from the chile liqueur that differs markedly from most tequila drinks. I gotta admit, though, that the last thing it reminded me of was a Manhattan.

Excellent. I agree with R. Spain and like it with Amaro Lucano, which makes it a distinctive Brooklyn variant rather than just a re-proportioned version of Grohusko's original recipe, which I make with Golden Moon's Amer Picon reconstruction. I also like serving it in an old-fashioned glass with a Luxardo cherry for garnish.

The mint notes were one of the first things I noticed on my first sip, but I am also impressed at how much bitterness just 1/4 oz of the Lucano imparts. Good balance overall. I use Cheritelli maraschino, which has a bit more maraschino flavor than Luxardo liqueur and plays well with a Luxardo cherry garnish. By way of contrast, Phil Ward (in the Death & Co. cocktail book) says "no garnish," but the Luxardo cherry works here, esp. with Cheritelli.

Well-balanced; agree that 1/4 oz is enough with thick, bottled ginger syrup. The Aperol ties everything together nicely. And this drink provides yet another use for our jar of candied ginger, which I'm trying to use while it's still soft enough to pierce with a cocktail sword. Distinct and tasty.