My Particularly Bitter Pal

Photo by Hum

Fortunately the new Macon restaurant in Chevy Chase DC is better at conceiving and mixing drinks than naming them. This one is a variation on the Old Pal cocktail that usually has whiskey (I've seen rye or Canadian specified), Campari and dry vermouth.

For this version, the Macon bartenders mix equal amounts of rye (Old Overholt), Hum (a new hibiscus-based bitter), and Carpano Antica Formula vermouth. They shake it rather than stir, mixing the bitter through it and giving it a nice pink color, and pour it into an Old-Fashioned glass filled with ice. It is a nicely balanced drink, with a good herby bitter flavor and just the right touch of sweet. You don't taste the whiskey at all, but it's lurking in the depths, giving the drink a nice body and punch.

Hum is described on its web site as a "botanical spirit" and "inspired by the Caribbean." Technically a liqueur, it is 70 proof and serviceable as a base spirit. It is a pot-stilled rum infused with hibiscus, ginger, cardamom and kaffir lime. The web site tells me it's available at Paul's, so I will look for it the next time I'm there.

Other drinks we sampled over a couple of visits to Macon were something called Water Lillet, which had gin, white Lillet and lemon served straight up -- again a good balance though a bit "girly." I tried a moonshine cocktail (called something like Another Silver Drink, or some such very forgettable name). It had lemon, demerara (apparently a type of sugar), and something else I'll have to check, so basically a sour. It was fresh and original.

Some of the "signature" drinks in this new craft cocktail boom are half-baked efforts to juggle traditional recipes or find unusual ingredients. These by contrast are nicely balanced, finished efforts that do offer a fresh flavor. Macon apparently used a cocktail consultant and hired some good bartenders. That along with great food will keep this place mobbed.