Gansevoort Fizz

If a drink could inspire me to send love letters to its creator, this would be one of them. Not that I’m in the habit of sending anonymous, bourbon-perfumed mash notes to innovative mixologists—that particular level of weirdness is several steps beyond where I normally live my life—but in the twisted, confused world of creative drinking, it’s a lovely thing to know with certainty the name of the person responsible for crafting a well-composed concoction.

This one’s from David Wondrich’s Killer Cocktails, and was originally devised by Mr. Wondrich for the bar menu at 5 Ninth, a watering hole in Manhattan just a few blocks from the West Village apartment where I spent most of the 1990s. If bars like this—if drinks like this—could be found just up the street back when I called the neighborhood home, it’s quite possible I’d be there still.

William Hamilton compared this drink to a gramophone rag played on digital equipment. With its robust depth and gentle complexity of flavor, the Gansevoort Fizz is a wonderful drink to keep in mind when you really want to capture the attention of a jaded palate.

Gansevoort Fizz

• 2 ounces medium-bodied rum (Wondrich suggests Appleton V/X—I agree wholeheartedly)
• 1 ounce fresh lemon juice
• 1 ounce Drambuie
• 2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled glass; top with 2 or 3 ounces chilled soda water (NO ICE PLEASE! Fizzes are meant to be consumed rather quickly, while the bubbles are still lively in the glass.)