I’m raising my glass to a new designer and his elaborately complicated whirlwind of a piano with a little piano playing of my own. I once made a cocktail that was inspired by one of my favorite Tom Waits songs, The Piano Has Been Drinking (Not Me), from his 1976 album Small Change. The song is archetypical Waits, with his growling, gravely yet sweetly melodic voice, set in a corner of a dive bar and full of nonsensical lyrics and erratic notes. Listening to it transports you to the scene, and you feel sad and nostalgic for all those times you may have felt alone in the world, or may have stayed up a bit too late, having one too many, perhaps. I envisioned flavors of coffee and cigarettes when I first made that cocktail (not that I smoke, although I’m not one to judge, as evidenced by this boozy blog).

But the original version was too sweet, and too complicated. I decided to revisit it thanks to this drunken piano that swerves and zigs and zags all over the place in a messy yet contained composition. Out went the coffee, which may have been misplaced anyway. I know the espresso martini is a wildly popular nightcap these days but honestly, coffee is not what I want for a nightcap anymore. The tequila base remains, along with a little mezcal, which evokes the appropriate dive bar drunkenness and smoky ambiance at the heart of the scene. The sherry acts as the contrasting sweetener. I used a special blend of Oloroso and Pedro Jimenez called East India Solera, which is rich and layered with sweet notes. The original also had ginger spice, so I kept that too with a little ginger liqueur. Granted the drink is still on the sweet side, but that’s how I want to drown my sorrows, so don’t judge me. Cheers!

Drunk Piano

1 oz reposado

½ oz mezcal

¾ oz East India Solera

½ oz ginger liqueur

1 dash Angostura bitters

1 dash orange bitters

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