Bonal and Rye — Equal parts Savoyard quinquina and rye, stirred down with two kinds of bitters

Bonal and Rye

Equal parts Savoyard quinquina and rye, stirred down with two kinds of bitters

Number of people

Ingredients

  • 2 dashesOrange Bitters
    Lifts the gentian toward the citrus
    Substitute: Regans' Orange No. 6
  • 1 dashAromatic Bitters
    One dash only; the drink is already bitter
    Substitute: Angostura
  • 1 1/2 ozBonal Gentiane-Quina
    Half the drink, and the half that is being introduced
    Substitute: Another gentian quinquina
  • 1 1/2 ozRye Whiskey
    A spicy rye rather than a soft one
    Substitute: Bourbon, though the drink turns sweeter

Instructions

  1. Chill a coupe
  2. Add 1 1/2 oz Bonal, 1 1/2 oz rye, 2 dashes orange bitters and 1 dash aromatic bitters to a mixing glass
  3. Fill with ice and stir until cold
  4. Strain into the chilled coupe and express an orange peel over the surface

Technique Notes

Equal parts means measure. Bonal is sixteen percent and the rye is closer to fifty, so a heavy hand on the whiskey does not make the drink stronger so much as it removes the gentian the drink was built around.

Why the Bonal and Rye Works

Rye and gentian both lead with dryness, so the drink has no sweet centre and does not want one. Two kinds of bitters do the work a vermouth would normally do, tying the whiskey's spice to the quinquina's bark without adding sugar.