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New Cocktails: the Right Boulevard

While I haven't been drinking a whole lot lately, I still enjoy a cocktail now and then. While flipping through The Art of the Shim once again, I remembered how much I enjoyed the Boulevardier 1934. But let's see what happens when we give it a rhum-y spin.

The Right Boulevard

1 oz Cocchi di Torino
1 oz Cocchi Americano
0.5 oz Bruto Americano
0.5 oz aged rhum agricole

Combine all ingredients, stir on ice for fifteen seconds, then strain into a chilled coupe.

The aromas are rather shy until the drink warms up a bit, with vanilla from the vermouth leading the way followed by citrus from the Americanos and a touch of agricole grassiness/brandy. The sip opens with sweet citrus (especially grapefruit), some red bitter in the middle, fading out through classic agricole flavors. The finish is a melange of thick bittersweetness, pine, grass, brandy, and grapefruit pith.

As I suggested in my previous post, the basic form of this drink seems very amenable to modification. While my initial thought had been to drag it back into more classic territory with some rye whiskey, a bottle of Clément VSOP caught my eye. From there Bruto Americano seemed like a solid accompaniment to bring it in a more herbal direction compared to Campari. While this ended up a bit sweeter than I was envisioning, my wife declared it the best cocktail I've ever made so I'm not about to dismiss it.