Image via Whiskey Blue at W Los Angeles

Recipe:

• 2 oz Old Forester Bourbon
• .25 oz Pomegranate Molasses
• .5 oz Simple Syrup
• .5 oz Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 dash of Angostura Bitters

Pour a splash of Absinthe in a rocks glass and then pour out (in and out repeatedly) and add ice. Pour all other ingredients into a shaker into the rocks glasses over ice with the interior of the glasses lined with the Absinthe. Garnish with a twist.

No, it’s not just the alcohol making that sentence seem wrong–I think something got lost in translation when it was sent to me. Try this, instead:

Rinse a rocks glass with Absinthe just to coat and discard the rest. Fill the rocks glass with ice. Combine the bourbon, molasses, syrup, lime juice, and bitters in a cocktail shaker over ice and shake vigorously. Strain the cocktail into the waiting rocks glass and garnish with a twist.

Why strain out the ice in the shaker when you’re just pouring the cocktail over ice anyway? Unless you’ve got an ice shortage going on, you always want to use fresh ice for your drinks. The ice that’s in the shaker has been agitated and is already starting to melt. That’s good for a prescribed amount of water mixing into the cocktail, but you don’t want to over-dilute the completed drink, either. The ice cubes in the glass will hold up longer since you’re pouring an already-chilled mix over them.

***This recipe was submitted by a representative of Whiskey Blue at W Los Angeles. I am not affiliate with the establishment, nor was I compensated for this post. As always, we encourage responsible refreshment and the use of the Designated Driver. No drunken monkeys, please!***