Norwegian Wood

Norwegian Wood by Jeff Morgenthaler

I’d like to raise my glass now to you all for your interest and support, reading my writing each week. It is certainly much more enjoyable for me, knowing you appreciate these pairings. This anniversary toast, to commemorate my five year milestone, appropriately comes from one of my favorite bartenders as well. The traditional five year anniversary gift is, rather fittingly, wood. The cocktail comes from Jeff Morgenthaler, an influential and celebrated barman from Portland, Oregon. His recipes and instructional books set the standard for high quality with no nonsense. He writes on his helpful blog about a cocktail he created using aquavit, the Scandinavian caraway spirit that is somewhat similar to gin.

An elegant drink for the occasion

The story goes that he was challenged by a liquor company representative who was selling aquavit to come up with a tasty cocktail on the spot using that ingredient. Perhaps the rep knew of Morgenthaler’s reputation (likely) as a drinks wizard and was trying to stump him, or perhaps he knew that Jeff hated to work under pressure and wanted to annoy him (dumb). Whatever he was thinking, he was lucky, and maybe smart. It’s not easy to make a great drink with aquavit, and it wasn’t a well known spirit in the US ten years ago. Morgenthaler rose to the challenge and made what some said was the best drink he had created up to then. He simply admitted that he thought it was delicious. Here’s a really nice cocktail, a little gift of “wood”, to celebrate these milestones. I wish you all the best in life and happiness for your own milestones, each one unique and special. Cheers!

A pair of milestones

Norwegian Wood by Jeff Morgenthaler, 2009

1 oz aquavit

1 oz applejack

¾ oz sweet vermouth

¼ oz yellow Chartreuse

1 dash Angostura bitters (I substituted Stickman Sapele Bitters for another nice touch of wood)

Stir ingredient with ice and strain into a favorite glass. Lemon peel garnish.