My Favorite Things

Boxes and Booze

To ring in the New Year along with this portentous puzzle I’ve mixed up A Few of My Favorite Things, just like the box does.  The aptly named drink features the special Italian aperitif known as Barolo Chinato which comes from the Piedmont region in north western Italy.  Barolo is a prized wine made from the Nebbiolo grape, with a following and provenance which needs no alternate use.  Yet generations of distillers have used it as a base in which to steep cinchona bark, spices, sugar and herbs to produce unique and delicious vintages of something incredibly special.  It’s like applying the addition of complex puzzles to an incredibly skilled and beautiful piece of woodwork which could easily stand on its own to create something richer and more layered.  

My Favorite Things by Paul Manzelli

Mixologist Paul Manzelli, head bartender at Bergamot in Massachusetts, combined a few of his favorite things into this cocktail, which includes Barolo Chinato along with rye whiskey and the Italian Amari Aperol and Cynar.  The chinato brings wonderful balance to this combination of the lightly bitter grapefruit Aperol and the surprisingly sweet artichoke Cynar.  Manzelli clearly loves Italian aperitifs and digestifs.  And who can blame him.  This cocktail might become one of your favorite things too. 

Here’s a toast to woodwork and whiskey and warm winter laughter, puzzles and potions and praise to the crafter, boxes and booze and what family brings, yes, these are a few of my favorite things.  

Cheers and Happy New Year!

A few of my favorite things ...

My Favorite Things by Paul Manzelli

1 ½ oz rye whiskey

½ oz Aperol

½ oz Cynar

½ oz Barolo Chinato

1 dash orange bitters

Stir ingredients with ice and strain into a favorite glass.  Garnish with an orange twist or a Stickman logo.