Sharpie Mustache — An equal-parts stir of gin, rye, amaro and quinquina

Sharpie Mustache

An equal-parts stir of gin, rye, amaro and quinquina

Number of people

Ingredients

  • 3/4 ozGin
    A London dry; the juniper needs to be audible
  • 3/4 ozRye Whiskey
    A hundred proof rye in the published spec
  • 2 dashesElemakule Tiki Bitters
    Cinnamon and allspice over the top of all four
    Substitute: Any tiki bitters
  • 3/4 ozAmaro Meletti
    Burnt sugar and saffron; the amaro Elford was on at the time
    Substitute: Any gentle, saffron-led amaro
  • 3/4 ozBonal Gentiane-Quina
    The dry half of the bitter register
    Substitute: Any blanc quinquina

Instructions

  1. Add 3/4 oz gin, 3/4 oz rye, 3/4 oz Amaro Meletti, 3/4 oz Bonal and 2 dashes tiki bitters to a mixing glass
  2. Fill with ice and stir until cold
  3. Strain into a chilled rocks glass
  4. Express an orange twist over the surface and drop it in

    The oils are part of the recipe, not decoration

Technique Notes

Four ingredients at three quarters of an ounce each, and the equality is the point. Nothing here is a base. The gin's juniper, the rye's grain, the amaro's burnt sugar and the quinquina's gentian all arrive at the same volume, and the bitters is the only thing that gets to be small.

Why the Sharpie Mustache Works

Meletti runs on burnt sugar and saffron, Bonal on gentian and quinine. They are the sweet and the dry of the same bitter register, and splitting them is what keeps an equal-parts drink from settling into one note. The tiki bitters lays cinnamon and allspice across all four.