Adonis

The ADONIS was created by New York City’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in 1884 to promote a long-running burlesque show called, well, “Adonis.” Punchdrink.com says “Adonis” is often credited as the first-ever Broadway musical, which makes this cocktail’s history pretty special. Finally, a cocktail with a pedigree. This is our first encounter with a sherry-based cocktail, however, and we are, admittedly, a little skeptical of it. Will we break out into song? Will we lose all credibility? Do we have any credibility to lose?

ADONIS
2 oz. dry sherry (Lustau 3 En Rama Fino de el Puerto de Santa Maria)
1 oz. sweet vermouth (Dolin)
1-2 dashes orange bitters (Rituals DIY Orange Bitters)

Combine with ice; shake. Strain over ice.

I can’t say we enjoyed this very much at all. Sure, the Adonis is a non-threatening, low-alcohol aperitif but it seems aimless to us. It’s a cocktail with low initiative and few goals. To me it tastes flat and winey and heavy in my mouth somehow. Bubbles. It needs bubbles to defibrillate my palate back to life! This is what it needs, in my opinion, but we are too demoralized to do anything about it.

Eric: “It’s very ambiguous.”
Brian: “This is another nothing drink.”
Eric: “It just lays there in your mouth, like a dead… like a dead… It just lays there.”
Brian: “This is what happens when you combine fortified wine with more fortified wine.”
Eric: “I understand that someone might want to have one of these before dinner, but I’m not sure who that someone is.”

SCORES: Brian 2, Eric 2.

Perhaps someday we will return to the ADONIS on a summer day and its sublime refreshingness will wash over us. Yes, we will meet again, ADONIS.