Hello and happy spring Friday. I say that with mixed feelings to be honest. I like spring in the sense that winter is officially over, and the chances of a major snowstorm are reduced.

But spring also means I can’t breathe properly without copious amounts of medication thanks to the wafting cloud of pollen that’s now starting to float about. So, mixed bag for sure.

Luckily it’s the end of the week, and it’s time for drinks. This week, I was inspired by the travels of our own version of Carmen Sandiego: who I believe is somewhere in South America at the moment. I remembered I had an overlooked bottle of pisco sitting in my cabinet, and decided I needed to break it out again.

I wanted to avoid making a pisco sour, mainly because that’s a fairly common drink, so I went looking and found this article going over pisco cocktails and I picked the El Capitán, because it loo easy and should let the pisco shine through.

El Capitán:

2 oz. Pisco

1 oz. Sweet vermouth

2 dashes Angostura bitters

Add all ingredient to mixing glass with ice. Stir for 20 seconds. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

This drink looks very much like a Manhattan, but ever so slightly lighter. Given pisco is clear, no real surprise here.

It starts out with a strong lemon nose, with a decent amount of vermouth aroma mixed in. I can get some notes of the Pisco I think. I don’t use this nearly enough to pick it out of a lineup (or in this case, a drink) but I wouldn’t believe you if you blindfolded me and told me I was smelling a Manhattan. It is close, but you can tell theres something different in here.

This is interesting. When I took my first sip, I really couldn’t peg any distinct flavor until I moved it around my palate. After that, it was like time delayed flavor bomb went off. All of a sudden I get a rush of vermouth, and bitter flavors. Looking back at the last time I used pisco, I now remember how mostly neutral the flavors are, so that would explain how the Dolin and the Angostura lead the way flavor wise. As to the pisco itself, I’m having a hard time picking it up initially. As this warms up/I have more if this, I think I can finally start to pick it out from the bitters/vermouth cover. It’s subtle, but its there.

I’m kind of on the fence with this one. By no means is it bad, It would be good in a pinch for the very rare occasion I’m without bourbon or rye and want a Manhattan, but I’m unsure if I would make it ahead of the Judgement day. That one is a bit more complex and that makes it stand out. Though if you’re looking for a different use for Pisco other than a sour, you can’t go wrong with the El Capitán. Though I suppose I should get around to making a Pisco Sour now shouldn’t I…