(Not the Official) Waterfire Cocktail
In a rocks glass:
½ oz Green Chartreuse
1 rosemary sprig
In a shaker:
2 oz Sons of Liberty Battle Cry Whiskey
½ oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
½ oz Lemon Juice
Ignite Chartreuse and Rosemary, then shake the remaining ingredients in the shaker with ice, strain into the rocks glass extinguishing the flame. Top with crushed ice and garnish with another sprig of Rosemary.
Let me first preface this with the disclaimer that I generally don’t like, appreciate, or condone flaming drinks, especially when the flame detracts from the flavors of a drink (like the goddamned “Bohemian Absinthe Ritual” bullshit) or if it presents an unnecessary fire hazard, especially in crowded establishments. This, and more specifically the drink it’s based on, is one of the very few that I know of that the flame actually enhances the flavor. More on that in a bit.
I’ve been wanting to come up with a themed cocktail for Waterfire here in Providence. For those who don’t know, Waterfire is a regular event throughout the Spring, Summer, and Fall where the installed fire braziers are lit at sunset from the basin at Providence Place down the rivers that flow through Waterplace Park (the Woonasquatucket river) and the middle of downtown Providence (the Moshassuck and Providence rivers). The evening of ambiance and fire is mesmerizing as music plays all along the river and people gather to bask in the art, artists, food, drink, and fire. Also, I wanted to use these awesome glasses I picked up at one of the events.
I obviously wanted to make a flaming drink, but one that the flame actually enhanced the drink as opposed to just making a semi-drinkable Molotov. I fell back on the Rubicon, which is one of the new drinks that really benefits from a little flame by drawing out the oils from the Rosemary sprig, adding an incredible herbal enrichment to the nose and flavor. After learning that this drink was specifically named because…
“The rosemary curled in the glass reminded me of Caesar’s laurels and therefore I’ve named this libation after the famous river Caesar crossed in 49 BC after uttering the now famous words: ‘Let us go where the omens of the Gods and the crimes of our enemies summon us! THE DIE IS NOW CAST!’ It is with this action that the Roman Empire began, and western civilization as we know it.” – Jamie Boudreau
… I knew that this had to be the inspiration for the recurring infernal arts festival that has heralded much growth and culture in my newly adopted city.
Much like the Boulevardier to the Negroni, this is a swap of Whiskey for Gin. Other than that I kept it to the original, but am open to swapping out the Luxardo for something else like an Amaro or even an Absinthe. I went with the Sons of Liberty Battle Cry as it’s a local Rhode Island Whiskey. The closest Sons of Liberty has to a true Rye Whiskey is their Battle Cry, made of Rye Malt and Honey Malt, and a Rye Whiskey, in my humble opinion, is a Whiskey of the North. Sometime I’ll have to make another flaming drink using their Uprising Whiskey to make a drink called The Gaspee.
