Federales Reserve

Ok, here's a cocktail to squeeze in among the upcoming travel posts.  A couple weeks ago the TDN theme was "Mint."  I was quite pleased with the first drink I came up with: 

Federales Reserve

• 1½ oz Tequila Blanco
• ½ oz Aperol
• ½ oz 1:1 simple syrup
• ¾ oz lemon juice
• 1 dash Scrappy's Cardamom Bitters
• Mint

muddle mint, bitters, and simple, shake and double strain into coupe, mint leaf garnish

This was the first time I played with the Cardamom bitters, and I'm a fan.  They add a nice spice and richness to the drink, and the mint offsets it with a bit of coolness.  The drink has a similar balance and brightness to a margarita, but with somewhat more complexity.

The name went like this: Mint -> US Mint -> Federal Reserve -> Federal Reserve + Tequila == Federales Reserve.

Oh, and over at Mixoloseum they recently started a database of sorts with some TDN drinks (among others I believe).  I'll plan to have the bold name of my drinks above the recipie link to the appropriate entry from now on if I remember.  Enjoy.