Properly Sauced: A Quiet Smoke in the Woods

By Anthony Todd in Food on Jan 16, 2012 4:30PM

It's finally winter in Chicago - that means it's time to start mixing with scotch. Scotch cocktails are notoriously difficult to concoct, but as mixers continually reach for new flavors and new ingredients to tantalize customers, examples (good and bad) are appearing on cocktail menus all over Chicago. The Black Grouse, attempting to encourage innovation in scotch mixology (and sell a few extra bottles of their blended scotch whiskey) got some of Chicago's best mixers together last month for a cocktail competition.

Mike Ryan has an unmatched flair for cocktail names, and A Quiet Smoke in the Woods is a perfect fit for this variation on the Rob Roy. It's an unobtrusive cocktail, with no wild flavors or infusions, but it is smooth, smoky and tastes like the a forest in the winter with a farmhouse fireplace in the distance. It isn't the most exotic of the entries, but it's probably the easiest for you to try at home without having to buy a ton of ingredients or juice several kinds of fruits. Plus, we happen to be in a Rob Roy phase this winter, so anything that riffs on that is right up our alley.

A Quiet Smoke in the Woods
by Mike Ryan, Sable Kitchen and Bar

2 ounces of The Black Grouse (or another blended scotch)
3/4 oz. Madeira
1/4 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
Two hard dashes Angostura bitters

Stir in a large mixing glass with ice and strain into a coupe. If you have a Luxardo-marinated cherry sitting around, throw that in too.