The toast to this magnificent achievement required some delicate diplomatic détente as I stepped behind enemy lines.  I mean, I’m congratulating an Arch Nemesis, after all. The cocktail was created by Jillian Vose, a well-known figure in the spirits industry who has been a major presence in the New York City bar scene. Vose was the bar manager at Death & Company, before stepping into the role of beverage director at “World’s Best Bar” winning Dead Rabbit, where she got to flex her Irish roots. Most recently she has relocated to Charleston, South Carolina, where she will be launching her newest bar concept, Hazel & Apple, along with the release of her new Irish whiskey.

Back in 2010, when Jillian was just starting out at D&Co, as she recounted to me recently, it felt like she had to “fake it till you make it”, trying to make an impression as both a newbie and a woman in that male dominated industry. It helped that she was really good at bartending! Although she says that she didn’t know a lot about inventing new drinks at the time, she learned quickly, and helped compile the landmark D&Co book Modern Classic Cocktails, where this cocktail appears.

Enemy Lines is a drink she references a lot. One of the first real cocktails she embraced was the Sazerac, the New Orleans classic twist on a rye Old Fashioned with Peychaud’s bitters and an absinthe rinse. She recalls at the time she had been learning about aquavit, the Scandinavian spirit, and tequila as well, two spirits with rich but geographically different agricultural histories. It seemed odd to combine them, like crossing enemy lines, and had to be done carefully. The Norwegian aquavit Linie (pronounced LINN-yuh) was chosen for its distinctive characteristics. The potato based spirit is flavored with caraway, dill, aniseed, sweet fennel and coriander, and then matured in ship-bound Oloroso sherry casks, where it traverses the globe, crossing the equator line (‘linie”) twice before arriving back home in Oslo – a process meant to mimic the original ocean barrel ageing the spirit underwent in its origin days.

Linie provides a rye heavy character to the drink essential for this Sazerac variation (as opposed to more herbal aquavits), and reposado tequila is specifically needed for the wood aged notes and softer flavors imparted by the resting process. The rich cane sugar syrup imparts texture along with subtle sweetness. Heavy doses of red bitters add color and complexity of flavor. At Death & Company they make a “house Peychaud’s” bitter which splits traditional Peychaud’s with Bitter Truth’s Creole bitters, so the drink actually has three different types of bitters which all add to the flavor. Imagine a highly seasoned sauce which borrows heavily from the spice cabinet, and you’re halfway there. A few final flourishes are required to complete the drink, a lemon twist and the all-important for a true Sazerac absinthe mist (a detail that Vose noticed was left out of the D&Co book recipe). It’s a delicious cocktail, but enjoy it carefully, lest you get caught behind … enemy lines. Cheers!

Enemy Lines by Jillian Vose

1 ½ oz Linie aquavit

¾ oz reposado tequila (El Tesoro)

1 tsp cane sugar syrup (2:1)

4 dashes of “House Peychaud’s” bitters

1 dash Bitter Truth Aromatic bitters

Absinthe mist

Stir ingredients with ice and strain into a favorite glass over a large cube. Express lemon twist and mist the absinthe over the glass. Officially, no garnish.

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