Paper Plane — 2007 Brooklyn cocktail proved amaro liqueurs deserved

A 2007 Brooklyn cocktail proved amaro liqueurs deserved their own moment at the bar.

Ingredients

• 1 oz bourbon
• 1 oz Amaro Nonino
• 1 oz Aperol
• 1 oz fresh lemon juice
• Garnish: a lemon wheel

Method

Grab your shaker and fill it with ice. Add the bourbon first, then the Amaro Nonino. Nonino is the key here — it’s got this honeyed, grape-forward sweetness that plays perfectly with bourbon. Pour in the Aperol next. That’s your bitter orange balance. Finish with the fresh lemon juice. Shake hard for 12 seconds. You want this drink ice cold because all that citrus and amaro needs the chill to come together properly. Double strain into your glass — the fine strainer catches any citrus pulp that might make the drink cloudy.

Serve

Serve this over one large ice cube in a rocks glass. Garnish with a lemon wheel on the rim — not floating in the drink, but perched on the edge.

Pro Tip

If you can’t find Amaro Nonino, try Amaro dell’Erborista or even Ramazzotti. The drink changes character but stays balanced. Some bartenders bump the bourbon up to a full ounce and keep the other three at three-quarters — it makes the whiskey sing a little louder if that’s your preference. And always use fresh lemon juice. The bottled stuff will wreck the delicate bitter-sweet balance that makes this drink work.