Old Pal
Rye, dry vermouth and Campari in equal parts, the Boulevardier's drier cousin
Ingredients
- 1 ozDry VermouthExtra dry, and fresh from the fridge
- 1 ozCampariThe bitter thirdSubstitute: Another red bitter aperitivo
- 1 ozRye WhiskeyA spicy ryeSubstitute: Canadian whisky, as in the 1927 text
Instructions
- Chill a rocks glass
- Add 1 oz rye whiskey, 1 oz dry vermouth and 1 oz Campari to a mixing glass
- Fill with ice and stir until well chilled
- Strain into the chilled glass over fresh ice
- Express a lemon peel over the surface and drop it in
Technique Notes
Stir it, do not build it in the glass: three ingredients at room temperature need the dilution a stir gives them. Rye rather than bourbon, and a genuinely dry vermouth, or the drink slides back toward a Boulevardier. The lemon peel matters more here than orange would; it keeps the glass bright.
Why the Old Pal Works
Dry vermouth takes the sweet vermouth's place and with it the cushion that makes a Boulevardier round. What is left is rye spice and Campari's bitter orange with nothing between them, which is the point: a lean, bracing drink where the Boulevardier is a warm one.