Christine Babb

Made this for my daughter (a big fan of Nonino) as a way to branch out from her usual Paper Plane. I quite like the Nardini sub in this recipe, and added a dash of orange bitters just for fun. Two thumbs up!

Note: The original Exit Strategy recipe was added to DG in July 2023, but was not properly attributed to Natasha David as of today’s date.

So yummy! I used heavy whipping cream, which I frothed just a bit to thicken slightly for the float. Inadvertently grabbed some Ghirardelli 100% cacao (unsweetened) for the garnish - I wasn’t disappointed with it, as the drink seems much closer to a two on the sweetness scale than a four.

If you want this to be a cherry focused drink with marzipan accents I recommend Tempus Fugit creme de noyaux

If you want this to be an amaretto sour with complex cherry notes I recommend Lazzaroni and replacing the simple with orgeat.

both are excellent but I prefer the second

With the Tempus Fugitive in place of…? Or in addition to?

Further experimentation has led to the Dry Barbican Minute 🤣

1.75 oz reposado tequila (Don Julio again)
1/3 oz dry vermouth (I used Cocchi Extra Dry)
1/3 oz Carpano Antica Formula
0.25 oz maraschino (Maraska again)
7 drops Bob’s Margarita Bitters
3 drops saline solution

Stir, serve over a big cube. Garnish per the original.

I find that this serve nicely preserves the agave character in the reposado.

Wouldn’t that be a Perfect Barbican Minute?

Any ideas why it’s called this?

It’s related to Gangnam Style (Korean nouveau riche), I believe.

Agreed. Now added. Thanks for suggesting.

I mentioned it to a fellow Difford’s Guide enthusiast last night (as we were mixing a batch of Franks, of course) who suggested the Z Martini might be a better fit to celebrate Jay-Z. 🙂

Only two out of three? There’s pretty much no occasion that isn’t made better with The Frank, but it seems odd to omit it for the celebration of Frank Zappa’s birthday. 🙂

Thank you. Our puzzlement was about the instruction to apply two spritzes on top of the glass and one on the side. We don't understand what is meant by that. Cheers.

Oh! Yes, that is unusual. My guess is it’s for additional aroma.

btw if anyone can explain the spritz garnish we'd be grateful. We just added to the mix a gentle dash of peated Islay.

I know this response is quite a bit late, but I use a small atomizer spray bottle for the spritz (I keep these bottles on hand for absinthe, Laphroaig and orange blossom water).

Enjoying this cocktail again for the umpteenth time. I have a bottle of coconut sake that I’ve been trying to use up, and this is the perfect vehicle for it. Tonight I made it with orange *and* chocolate bitters, and toasted coconut rim (had some leftover from another recipe).

Just an all-around wonderful recipe.

Partner would enjoy this, Diet Mezcal.

Also the first typo I've caught on Difford's ("form").

Typo is still there! 🙂

Is the amount called for Crème de Violette above correct? How does one measure 0.04 oz? I read the Measurements section and did not find any guidance. Thanks in advance.

It’s 1/4 teaspoon.

Nice Martini riff. I am similarly flummoxed by the photograph - my drink looks nothing like that - did you use a Manhattan as the drink's stunt double? :-P

Very good. Definitely “boozy” - three of us were quite content to split a 2x recipe.

Absolutely needs the burnt lemon - brings it to a different level.

I had no Islay on hand (didn’t even notice that garnish ingredient until I had mixed the rest). As a result, I found this too sweet for my liking, but adding a couple drops of Vena’s Smoke bitters helped.

Made a Bergamot Bamboo cocktail (recipe found here on Diiford’s). Absolutely delightful sipper for a late spring/early summer afternoon. Lovely accompaniment to my last smidge of duck pâté and crackers. I’m looking forward to experimenting with Italicus in the next few months.

Loved this - but I'll ditch the simple next time, it's really unnecessary with the marmalade

Very tasty, but I think I will try this with 1/4 oz simple next time (more along the lines of the original recipe, as noted in the History above).

Subbed Montenegro for the Nonino. A bit too much lemon for my taste, but otherwise a great drink. I completely get the “not-hot-hot toddy” effect; I suspect if this were served hot, the proportion of lemon juice come closer to the mark.