Fernet February: "The Lucky Lady" from The Refinery

Tonight's cocktail is from a gem in the heart of downtown Vancouver's entertainment district - The Refinery. Now this is unique for a particular reason - there is basically no other purpose for coming to this part of downtown for drinks or food. Granville street is packed with bridge and tunnel crowds and restaurants and clubs that appease this population. Coming here on a Saturday night is a good idea if you like to watch parades of orange tans and un-buttoned silk or flannel shirts crowd the asphalt while whooping and blurting "bro" on their way to Caprice and AuBar. Too pretentious? Whatever.
The point is that in the heart of all this nonsense is a bar hidden upstairs with fantastic drinks and food, an interesting cocktail program, and constant fun events. Whether it's Wednesday night Mad Hatter Tea Parties, or the now-extinct Cocktail Kitchen, or Tales of the Cocktail spirited dinners, The Refinery always has something going on. If you're looking for good drinks and you're downtown, The Refinery is the place to go. They make some really interesting house syrups, bitters, and even a "Chartreuse pop," and offer an "impromptu punch" should you be unsure what drink to order off their excellent menu.

This drink is created by bar manager Graham Racich, and features at least one interesting ingredient: Pinot Des Charentes. This is basically a Cognac combined with a lightly fermented grape juice. It's quite sweet, but still has a little herbal character in the spirit of a fortified wine. Along with some housemade peach bitters, and the lately constant theme of Fernet, this drink comes out tasting deep yet light, and exciting. In fact, it might just be my favourite drink of all the Fernet February cocktails.

I have a review of The Refinery coming up soon (based on the pleasure of visiting them for Dine Out Vancouver) [[ it's done now, you can read it here ]], and possibly another excellent cocktail from resident 'mixologist,' Joel, and I will link these soon. In the meantime, I highly suggest heading to The Refinery, particularly on an event night (find these at their website www.therefineryvancouver.com). "The Lucky Lady" listed below is not on the cocktail menu yet, but if you're 'lucky' enough to have Graham working the night you visit, ask for this cocktail - it's fabulous.

The Lucky Lady

1.5oz Alberta Premium Rye
1oz Pinot Des Charentes
0.5oz lemon juice
0.25oz Fernet Branca
Dash of simple syrup
Dash of peach bitters
Finish with a twist of lemon

Add all ingredients to a shaker, shake with ice, strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist. 

[[ see the Fernet February introduction here ]]
[[ see the "Gastown Swizzle" from L'Abattoir here ]]
[[ see the "Dark and Fernet-y" from Rob Roy here ]]
[[ see the "Chinatown Sour" from The Keefer here ]]
[[ see "Pandemonium" from Veneto Tapa Lounge here ]]
[[ see "The Bittercup" from Pourhouse here ]]
[[ see "The Vested Bartender" from Boneta here ]]
[[ see "The Parliament" from The Diamond here ]]
[[ see "Parliament Hill" from The Hideout here ]]
[[ see "The Denny Triangle" from Jamie Boudreau / Canon here ]]