Tart, tangy, tasty. More good sipping for wintertime.
This is an interesting cocktail because it's actually quite new, but it tastes like a classic.
Frist concocted in 2007 by bartender, Sam Ross, at Milk & Honey in New York, the Paper Plane is a fresh flavor, but has all the nice layers and subtitles of a 100-year-old classic. Not to mention a significant kick.
By turns, sweet, sour and bitter, it fills your mouth with flavor anchored by the big base note of bourbon. Just perfect for a winter evening, though I wouldn't turn one down in July.
Add to all that the lovely, deep, red-orange color and you have a winner.
The ingredients (see below) aren't necessarily on everyone's shelf, but they are worth the investment. And the recipe – equal parts of each ingredient – is blessedly easy to remember.
So shake up a few of these beauties and have a nice flight.
Paper Plane
Equal parts:
- Bourbon
- Aperol
- Amaro
- Fresh lemon juice
Combine the ingredients, shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. For those who wish to garnish, a twist of orange peel works nicely.
A word about ingredients
Aperol is a bittersweet Italian aperitif, a bit like Campari but not as bitter. Not as expensive either.
Amaro is another Italian concoction, also bittersweet, but unlike Aperol, it is categorized as a liqueur. Heavier and thicker than an aperitif. Also, unlike Aperol, which is a brand, Amaro is a category. There are several different styles of Amaro and a bunch of different brands. Sam Ross prefers Amaro Nonio, but it's expensive and hard to find, so I used Amaro Meletti instead. Might be a good idea – not to mention fun – to work your way through the amaro shelf at your local liquor store and find the one you like best.