Winter Cocktails Come Ashore at Cana Rum Bar

Winter has arrived with a fierce gale at Cana Rum Bar.  General Manager Allan Katz has launched a new winter cocktail menu with beverages so tasty, pirates have been known to fight over them.  Here is a map to the treasure:

One of my favorites is the Camelot, made with Anejo rum, Amaro Montenegro, lime juice, poached pear syrup and white pepper.  This is a dagger and the winter version of Cana's classic JKO, except with poached pear instead of poached plum to better represent the season.  It is still a classy tribute to Jackie O.  It is easy drinking, delicious and not overly pear flavored.

Among the Cannons, the Red Eye to Rio is a standout.  It is a tribute to the classic Trader Vic Night Flight cocktail.  This is a potent cocktail and includes Stroh, a 160 proof Austrian spiced rum.  The other ingredients are cachaça, lime juice and maple syrup.  I will confess that I am not generally a fan of cachaça, so Katz impressed me by creating the first cachaça drink I can recommend.

The London Cut may be a Cannon but it stands in a class all by itself on the Cana menu.  It is a take on the Gordon's Cup made with Anaheim and Serrano pepper-infused Bols Genever and El Dorado rum, cucumber, lime, smoked salt and pepper.  This delicious concoction is peppery, spicy, salty and overall wonderful and is my favorite of the new list.  The previous list included the similar Stepping Razor, but switching to Bols and El Dorado from Demerara has upped the balance of this beauty who won't hesitate to slice you.

If your taste veers towards the spicy, the Deer Hunter may be the Cannon for you.  Made with Serrano-infused Heering, Anejo tequila, Old Overholt Rye and garnished with a lemon peel, it has a pleasant kick perfect for these chilly winter evenings.

Sometimes a little bit of citrus is just what the doctor ordered, and for nights such as those, the Crimean Collins makes house calls.  It includes cognac, two types of Jamaican rum, lemon, orgeat and champagne and is garnished with mint.  This Pistol has the power of lemon to perk up your palate and prepare you to walk the plank, if need be.

The winter list also includes:

Royal Oil: St. James Royal Ambre rum, Black Strap rum, lime and falernum.
Misti Dawn Sqizzle: Roiboos-infused Plymouth Gin, passionfruit juice, lime juice, Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur, Angostura bitters and Elemakule bitters.
Texas Early: Old Overhold Rye, Don's Miz, blackberries and lemon juice
Palmetto: El Dorado 12 Year Demerara, Carpano Antico Vermouth, orange bitters
Twist on a Twist: Overproof Rum, Amaro Cio Ciaro, Sangue Morlacco, lime juice, Angostura bitters
The Good Word: Reposado Mezcal, Yellow Chartreuse, maraschino, lime juice
Putnam's Point: Rye, Dos Maderas, Amaro Lucano, ginger, lemon, J.T. recipe bitters

Note: I was invited to sample these beverages by Cana Rum Bar at no cost.

Cana Rum Bar: 714 West Olympic Blvd (@Flower), DTLA. Phone: (213) 817-5321.  Website: canarumbar.com

Drago Centro Winter Cockail Menu

Celestino Drago with cocktail in hand

Drago Centro launched a new Winter Cocktail Menu with eleven drinks including eight new ones and three holdovers from the fall menu.  I was recently invited to sample the creations of Beverage Director Michael Shearin and Head Bartender Jaymee Mandeville. The list is eclectic with options for many palates, including sweet, tart, herbal and smoky.

My favorite (and the pick of the my fellow boozehounds) was the January Jones.  This was a hot drink, a take on a hot buttered rum.  It was creamy and spicy and all around delicious.  The ingredients are Appleton VX Rum, Demerara syrup, cinnamon tincture, butter, clove, star anise and hot water.  The studded lemon peel garnish completes the effect.  I must confess I am not usually a fan of hot alcoholic beverages, excepting cider, but the January Jones converted me.  It was a chilly night and this drink warmed me up.  This cocktail lived up to the attractiveness of its namesake Mad Men actress.

My other "best of tasting" was Unbridled, a take on a classic mint julep.  This beauty includes Laird's Applejack, Green Chartreuse, fresh mint and lime juice.  It had a nice crispness and tartness to it.  Very solid.

The Cusco's Crown is a tart cocktail made with Encanto pisco, pear puree, angostura bitters and lemon juice.  I am a fan of Encanto, and the other ingredients melded well with it, but be prepared for the tartness.

For those that enjoy getting their daily serving of vegetables in their cocktails may have found their drink of choice in the Morning Courage.  It is made with Bols Genever, serrano tincture, celery bitters, beet, lemon and hawaiian red sea salt.  The beet flavor was very strong and the cocktail is quite dramatic in appearance.

Watcher in the Woods is extremely herbal and is made with Death's Door Gin, Clear Creek Douglas Fir, Nocello, lavender and mint bitters.  This is not a drink I could finish as the douglas fir and the lavender made it too herbal and perfume like.  This drink is an acquired taste that I have yet to acquire.

The other new drinks are:

Greco Roman: Lustau Amontillado Sherry, Luxardo Morlacco, Fee Brothers rhubarb bitters and orange essence
Puro Sangre: Karlsson's Vodka, solerno blood orange, honey, blood orange "caviar"
Smitten With Britain: Tanqueray Gin, chives, lime juice, Fever Tree tonic
Smoke on the Horizon: Zaya Rum, Drambuie, Carpano sweet vermouth, atomized sombra mezcal, mole bitters
Smokehouse: Laphroaig 10 yr Scotch, clear creek cranberry, Berentzen Apfelkorn, apple, Fee Brothers whiskey barrel bitters, candied bacon (garnish)
Violette Femme: Real Blanco Tequila, Luxardo Maraschino, Creme de Violette, Ventura Limoncello, Yuzu

All signature seasonal cocktails are $12.  Don't forget that Drago Centro has the best value bar bites menu in the city.

Drago Centro: 525 South Flower St. (Downtown LA). Phone: (213) 228-8998. Website: dragocentro.com