To toast the Bassackwards Box I’m taking a cheeky turn toward Portland, Maine where the Portland Hunt + Alpine Club, a Scandinavian inspired bar owned by Andrew and Briana Volk sets the standard for cocktails. At Hunt + Alpine, bartender activist Hayley Wilson developed a signature style described as “classics with a ‘punk meets tropical’ edge”. Her cocktail ethos is one I also try to embrace, making elevated drinks that are not too fussy or complicated to make. She describes how she wanted to make a shaken drink for the colder months in Maine, and specifically show how surprisingly versatile fernet can be. “You don’t see a ton of drinks where fernet is really the true star. It’s a bully, and a little goes a long way but I think the combination of egg, maple syrup, and citrus really make the ounce and a quarter I used shine through without destroying your palate.”

Her “Color in Your Cheeks” features a bracing amount of Fernet-Branca, one of the bolder Italian amari you are likely to try. Fernet is a very bitter style of amaro originally marketed in Milan, 1845 as a cure for cholera and menstrual cramps. While the original recipe is a closely guarded secret of 27 herbs and botanicals, the company claims it includes “rhubarb, gentian, galangal, chamomile, linden (tiliae flos), iris, saffron, zedoary, myrrh and cinchona”. Wilson created a sour style cocktail with lemon juice to demonstrate how Fernet can play well with citrus. She layers in Applejack to give the drink some depth, and sweetens it all with maple syrup, a naturally perfect compliment to applejack (and Fernet). “Personally, when making drinks, I like to think about where I want to be, what I want to be doing, and what I want to be listening to when drinking that drink. In my mind, a great cocktail is an experience and that means thinking about your atmosphere as well. I named this drinks after one of my favorite Mountain Goats song because for me, winter in Maine is big wool sweaters, campfires, and strong drinks with something like The Mountain Goats or Neutral Milk Hotel in the background.” It’s a fabulous fall cocktail full of unexpected flavor. I think I may have misunderstood the name, and gotten the garnish all bassackwards, which is embarrassing, and making my cheeks turn red. Cheers!

Color in Your Cheeks by Hayley Wilson

1 ¼ oz Fernet-Branca

½ oz Laird’s Applejack

¾ oz lemon juice

¾ oz grade A Vermont maple syrup

½ oz egg white

Shake together to froth then add ice and shake to chill. Strain into a favorite glass and garnish with an apple fan or other interpretative flourish.