In these times of quarantine, we are passing the time with cocktails, board games, books, and baking. But we don’t want to drink up all of the whiskey right away, so we are turning to less-used bottles and getting creative.
This week? Chartreuse!
Yellow or Green? Whichever you have. Yellow is a little sweeter, lower proof, and less bitter than Green, but both are delicious.
The most well known Chartreuse cocktail is the Last Word. The bad thing is that I don’t have any citrus, and I bet few of you do, either. So I got to work digging through books and asking bartenders I respect on Twitter what their favorite Chartreuse drinks are. Here are three that don’t need citrus, plus notes on variations.
Widow’s Kiss
I know, not a great name for the current time. But that is what it is called.
This is a classic cocktail from the 1895 Modern American Drinks by George J. Kappeler. It is considered a digestif, so drink it after dinner.
Substitutions
- No Benedictine? Double the Yellow Chatreuse.
- No Calvados? Apple Jack will work, too.
Here is one I made last night:
Bijou
The Bijou is another classic!
Substitutions
- Any gin will work
- No gin? Try tequila for a Teatro, by Sother Teague in I’m Just Here for the Drinks
- I don’t have lemons, so I’m garnishing with mint sprigs.
Oh My Word
This is essentially a Last Word without lime juice. Introduced to me by Sother Teague.
Substitutions
- I don’t have lime bitters, so I’m using rhubarb bitters
- No Amaro Montenegro? Try Amaro Nonino
- No Old Tom gin? Or any gin will work. (But if you want to make your own Old Tom, add some simple syrup to regular dry gin and age it in a barrel for a week.)
Have a bottle of liquor that you don’t know how to use? Email me at chuck@grimmett.co with what you have on-hand and I’ll brainstorm some ideas with you!
Cook Like Chuck 