She walked into her dimly lit apartment with a sigh. It was Friday, it had been a long week, and all she wanted to do was relax and have a nice, quiet evening in. She shrugged out of her coat and dropped her purse by the front door, then walked further into the apartment. She flicked on the lights, and saw her own reflection staring at her from the dark window. She shook her head as she approached the window, closing the curtain on her tired face.
She went back to her purse, dug out her phone, and opened up her music. What did she want to listen to tonight? she mused, as she entered the kitchen. She leaned against the counter, scrolling through her phone. Classical? She was too tired for that. Rock music from the 80s? It was too lively. She finally settled on an electropop duo from Ohio; it was the right blend of melancholic and upbeat for her current mood.
As the music swelled around her, she set her phone down, and surveyed the kitchen. Before she could think about making dinner, she wanted a cocktail. One that would soothe away her weariness, one that would be calm but uplifting. She opened a cupboard, and pulled out her shaker, along with the whiskey, triple sec, and Angostura bitters. From the fridge, she retrieved a bottle of simple syrup, and some ice.
She started with the whiskey – two ounces went into the shaker. She was technically supposed to use a Canadian whisky for this drink, but instead used her favorite blended scotch; it was smooth and whiskey-y, and worked well in cocktails since it didn’t overpower the other ingredients. Plus, it was $11. Next she measured out half an ounce of triple sec, half a teaspoon of simple syrup, and added a dash of bitters.
She grabbed a few ice cubes, added them to the shaker, then placed the lid on top. She shook the shaker, the weight and rhythm familiar. She shook until her hands became cold, until she saw the metal at the bottom cloud over with a sheen of ice. She gave it a few more shakes, then popped the lid off, straining the drink into her coupe glass. She knew she should have chilled the glass beforehand, to keep her drink cooler, but it took just a bit too much foresight for her to include that step. Plus, it meant she needed to have space in her freeze for a tall, delicate piece of glass, and that just wasn’t practical.
To really make the drink complete, she should have added a twist of orange, but she didn’t have any, and really, that felt too performative to do alone in her apartment. She took a sip, and let out a contented sigh. This really was her favorite cocktail. It was smooth and sweet, without being sugary. The whiskey wrapped around the other ingredients like a warm coat, holding everything together. The orange from the triple sec brightened the flavor, while the bitters added some spice. All in the right proportions, none of them overpowering the others – a true case where the whole is more than the sum of its parts.
She took another sip, letting the flavors roll around on her tongue, feeling a sense of calm flow through her. She set the glass down, and cleared away the cocktail ingredients. She swayed slightly to the music, giving herself the moment to shut out the rest of the world, to forget about her tough week, to just enjoy the melody and the taste of whiskey on her lips. It could have been thirty seconds, or two minutes, but when she finally opened her eyes, she smiled to herself, and went back to her fridge, ready to prepare dinner and enjoy a night to herself.
Canadian Cocktail Recipe
2 ounces of Canadian blended whiskey
½ ounce Cointreau or triple sec
½ teaspoon simple syrup
dash Angostura bitters
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker, with ice. Shake well, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Recipe from Drinkology: The Art and Science of the Cocktail by James Waller.
© The Lightning Tower, 2020