Photo by Laurie Proffitt

The Bitters Truth Sometimes sweet is just too boring. By Nancy Ross Ryan When sweet elixirs -- wines, cocktails, liqueurs -- by the hundreds are there for the sipping, why would anyone reach, instead, for a drink that is decidedly bitter? Because too much of a good thing is sometimes enough. Because we, and our taste buds, often need a change of pace. Because bitters have been around for centuries and might well serve as good tonics or digestifs. Because a dash of bitters adds tremendous but subtle complexity to a surprising variety of drinks. And, because bitters -- enormously popular in the pre-prohibition era -- are in danger of disappearing from contemporary cocktails, through disuse. Bitters fall into two distinct categories. The first, and the one that has captured my fancy, is strong bitters used in small measure -- by the drop or half-teaspoonful -- for flavoring only. The second is bitter aperitif wines, usually served on the rocks. Popular brands of strong bitters include Angostura (from Trinidad), Peychaud's (New Orleans) orange bitters and peach bitters (England). Bitter aperitif wines include Amer-Picon (France), Cynar, Campari and Fernet Branca (Italy) and Gammel Dansk (Denmark). But whether they are consumed by the drop or by the ounce, their common denominator is bitterness. What makes bitters bitter, and what gives each its unique flavor profile, are the essences of bark, roots, fruits, peels, seeds, plants and various botanicals, infused into a spirits base. Originally, bitters, like liqueurs, were elixirs traditionally concocted by Medieval monks and used for medicine. Perhaps "medicinal" may be better than bitter as a flavor description. Some companies claim their proprietary brand contains as many as 40 aromatics, and all the formulas (of course) are secret. Although bitter aperitif wines may be used as an ingredient in mixed drinks, they are usually sipped on the rocks and sometimes mixed with soda. For example, cynar (pronounced "chee-nahr"), which takes its flavor from artichoke leaves, is taken before dinner in Italy, on the rocks, often with a slice of orange. World-famous campari is taken on the rocks, mixed with soda, and is the foundation for the classic negroni cocktail. Fernet Branca is Europe's most popular digestif according to Anthony Dias Blue (The Complete Book of Mixed Drinks,HarperPerennial, 1993), and on the rocks is the most popular way to drink it. A quick search through my favorite mixology books turned up dozens of recipes for intriguing-sounding cocktails using Angostura, Peychaud's and orange bitters. And my home bar, now stocked with these three, has become an experimental lab for bitters cocktails served to my good-natured and long-suffering friends. And any bar worth the name has a bottle of Angostura bitters behind it, and any bartender worth the title can mix a respectable gin and bitters. The combination of the gin -- redolent of juniper berries -- and Angostura bitters, carries the same kick as a Martini but an infinitely more complex flavor. Given a cue the bartender can usually come up with a fairly on-key version of some of the Angostura-flavored cocktails that follow, each of which serves one, unless otherwise noted. (Recommended resources: The Complete Book of Mixed Drinks, by Anthony Dias Blue, HarperPerennial, 1993; The World's Best Bartenders' Guide, by Joseph Scott & Donald Bain, HP Books, 1998; The Official Mixers Manual, by Patrick Gavin Duffy, Seventh Edition revised by Robert Jay Misch, Doubleday & Company, 1983.)

	GIN AND BITTERS 2 to 3 ounces gin 1/2 teaspoon Angostura bitters Mix the gin and bitters in a glass with ice cubes until chilled. Strain mixture into a chilled old-fashioned glass. Variation: Pour gin over ice cubes in an old-fashioned glass. Add a dash or two of bitters. Stir to mix. GIN AND DOUBLE BITTERS 2 ounces gin Dashes, to taste, of maraschino liqueur Dashes, to taste, of Angostura bitters Dashes, to taste, of orange bitters Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with crushed ice. Shake well and strain into a chilled glass. BIJOU 1 ounce gin 1 ounce green Chartreuse 1 ounce sweet Vermouth Dash orange bitters Lemon or orange peel twist Place in mixer glass with ice.Stir well. Strain into old-fashioned glass. Garnish with lemon or orange peel twist. SAZERAC 1 oz. bourbon or rye whiskey 2 drops Angostura bitters 2 drops Peychaud bitters 1 tsp. simple syrup (see Note) 1 tsp. Pernod 1 lemon peel twist Combine all the ingredients except the Pernod and lemon peel in a cocktail shaker with ice. Stir to mix, do not shake. Pour the Pernod into a chilled old-fashioned glass, tilting the glass to coat the sides. Pour out excess Pernod. Strain the cocktail ingredients into the chilled glass and top with the lemon peel twist. Note: To make simple syrup, combine 1 cup sugar with 1 cup water in a small saucepan and stir, over medium heat, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Pour into a clean glass jar and store, covered, refrigerated. CLASSIC CHAMPAGNE COCKTAIL 1 lump sugar Dash Angostura bitters Small lemon and/or orange twist Chilled Champagne Place sugar lump in Champagne glass and sprinkle with small dash of Angostura bitters. Add 1 small twist each of orange and lemon peel. Fill glass with iced Champagne. CHAMPAGNE COCKTAIL 3/4 ounce Southern Comfort Dash Angostura bitters lemon peel twist Place Southern Comfort, bitters and lemon twist in chilled Champagne glass. Fill with chilled Champagne. THE MORNING AFTER 1 ounce brandy 1 ounce kummel Several dashes Angostura bitters Several dashes Fernet Branca Place ingredients in a mixer glass with ice. Stir well and strain into rocks glass. TRINIDAD PUNCH 4 dashes Angostura bitters 1 ounce simple syrup 1 ounce lime or lemon juice 3 ounces rum Put 4 tablespoons finely cracked ice into a mixing glass and add ingredients in order listed above. Mix thoroughly, strain, and divide into 2 drinks. OLD OAK PUNCH 2 teaspoons sugar dissolved in 1 ounce water 1/4 ounce lime juice 2 ounces Angostura Old Oak Rum, Gold Label 2 dashes Angostura bitters Add chipped ice and stir. Garnish with grated nutmeg.

	BITTER LORE Angostura, today's most available and the world's most popular bitters, was created in 1824 by Dr. J.G.B. Siegert, a young surgeon who enlisted in the war for South American independence under General Simon Bolivar. He experimented with a blend of herbs and spices as a cure for the stomach disorders that plagued Bolivar's troops. He named his unique blend Angostura after the town on the banks of the Orinoco River where Bolivar established headquarters. The bitters were so successful, not only for its medicinal value but for its unique flavoring, that in 1850 he began to export it to England and to Trinidad. By the time he died in 1870, Angostura bitters were well-established. It was his great grandson, Robert Siegert, who brought the firm into the 20th century with the establishment of a research laboratory. Peychaud's bitters were first concocted in 1793 by a New Orleans apothecary, Antoine Amedie Peychaud, as a miracle tonic and cure-all for almost every disease. While its curative powers have never been proved, his bitters became a great favorite in New Orleans for mixed drinks, notably the Sazerac cocktail.

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