Candidate #2 for Montini - LOSER!

This was an attempt to make a not-too-sweet cocktail, since most of my popular mixes are pretty sweet.

1 part extra dry vermouth
1 part couvoisier cognac
1 lime
1 cups ice

Combine vermouth, cognac, and squeezed lime juice into a cocktail shaker. Add strips of lime zest, and ice. Shake. Makes 1 serving -- more than you will want to drink. Although the ingredients you started with were all of fine quality, the sum is far less than the parts. The result is an astringent fluid, bitter thanks to the lime zest, reminiscent of Formula 409. No amount of added sugar will make this beverage drinkable. Use it and the squeezed lime to freshen your garbage disposal.

The Montini Contest

I enjoy shaking up beverages for people at parties. The crowd-pleasers in my repertoire are mostly from allrecipes.com, inspired by martini bars, or from books. They include the Mochatini, the Vegas Martini, and the Bikini Martini.

Recently, my friend Christina has been prodding me to make something more original, and to name it after myself, as "The Montini". It's quite a challenge to come up with something that...

1. is original
2. tastes good
3. captures the essence of a person (or is at least not full of unfortunate metaphor or innuendo)
   

So, I propose a contest to create a beverage recipe. The winner will be dubbed "The Montini". Runners-up will receive creative names (or their creators may name them). Losers may be called names as well...

Candidate #1 for Montini

This drink takes its dusky orange color from the juice of the blood orange and dark rum. The sour lemon and cinamon prevent over-sweetness. The result is sweet, drinkable, and potent.

2 oz Flor de Caña (Nicaraguan Dark Rum)
2 oz Patron Citronage
1 lemon
1 blood orange
2 cups cracked ice
3 Tbsp raw tubinado sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Mix cinamon and turbinado sugar in a bowl wider than a martini glass. Combine rum and orange liqueur in a tall shaker. Slice and squeeze lemon juice into the mix. Include the pulp by scraping against the rim of the shaker. Avoid the peel; zest would make this drink bitter. Rub lemon on rims of two chilled martini glasses. Invert glasses into sugar bowl and spin, to coat the rims. Juice and pulp-scrape the blood orange. Fill shaker three quarters full with cracked ice. Add half of the blood orange. Shake vigorously. Pour into sugared martini glasses. Makes two servings.