#16. Gin Cocktail

So- the recipes available to me have increased substantially, due to the addition of orange bitters to my liquor cabinet. Thanks, Martin Wine Cellar! That's a pretty good store. I wasn't paying that much attention to the wine, which of course the place is named after. But, they had a pretty great selection of spirits, too, so anything that Rouse's can't provide me I can probably get there, unless I can't get it anywhere. That is also a thing that will happen.

This gin cocktail barely has enough stuff in it to call it a cocktail. It's just gin plus orange bitters, with a twist of lemon.

But, it does prove that my vermouth-drinking skills are terribly weak, since I probably liked drinking this more than almost any of the previous entries that included vermouth. I'd still prefer a gin & tonic to this gin cocktail, and I'd have enjoyed this more in a better chilled glass or (blasphemy!) with a piece of ice. But, i found it quite tolerable. The bitters and lemon peel, I think, were just enough of a distraction from the gin to keep this from feeling too strong. It's pretty strong, obviously- it's essentially pure gin, plus a few drops of flavoring, plus the trivial amount of water that melted during the stirring.

Not bad, though. Not bad.