Blood and Sand (Grouchy Version)

COCKTAIL INGREDIENTS:
- 22,5 ml Scotch
- 22,5 ml Sweet Vermouth
- 22,5 ml Cherry Heering Liqueur
- 10 ml Fresh Orange Juice
- 15 ml Fresh Pomerans/Bitter Orange Juice

GARNISH:
- Orange Twist

INSTRUCTIONS:
• Combine all of the ingredients in a cocktail shaker.
• Add ice and shake until chilled.
• Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
• Garnish with an orange twist.

Cocktail author: Unknown, recipe was first written down and published in The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock.

Continuing the last week’s theme of Blood and Sand, here is my little twist on the classic cocktail’s specs.

Last year I have come across bitter/sour orange variety, which when juiced has qualities of orange, lemon and even a bit of grapefruit like bitterness. This got me thinking. Often cocktails with orange juice can be slightly lacking, missing that brightness of lemon or lime. This orange variety, on the other hand, could be the perfect answer to this problem without any acid adjustment. Especially in the cocktail like Blood and Sand where sweet vermouth and cherry liqueur already brings a lot of sweetness, a little touch of tartness and bitterness can go a long way towards improving the overall favour profile of the cocktail.

In this particular version, woody notes of scotch form a solid cocktail base with sweet vermouth and cherry liqueur adding a bit of herbaceousness and fruitiness. At this point by splitting the orange juice between regular orange and bitter orange additional notes tartness brightens up the cocktail while also introducing subtle bitter after-tones increasing the overall taste complexity.

Blood and Sand with a gentle touch of bitter/sour orange juice is a lovely opportunity to test how simple adjustments can change the cocktail almost unrecognizably. Therefore, I highly recommend taking the two recipes and tasting them side by side. Give it a try if you have a chance.

Source material:
https://www.liquor.com/recipes/blood-and-sand/