Build

45 ml Bas-Armagnac
30 ml Sweet vermouth
30 ml Italian bitter (Dolin Bitter or Three Foxes Triple Bitter)
Garnish: orange peel

Method

Stir all three with ice in a mixing glass for 25 seconds. Strain over one large ice cube in a rocks glass. Express a wide strip of orange peel over the surface; drop it in. The armagnac brings dried-fruit warmth to a drink usually built on rye or bourbon.

Build

45 ml Bas-Armagnac
20 ml Sweet vermouth
20 ml Bénédictine
3 dashes Peychaud's bitters
3 dashes absinthe
Garnish: brandied cherry

Method

Stir armagnac, vermouth, Bénédictine, Peychaud's and absinthe in a mixing glass with ice for 25 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe. Drop a single brandied cherry into the bottom of the glass. The Louisiane was created at New Orleans' Restaurant de la Louisiane in the early 1900s — the armagnac swap leans deeper, drier.

Build

60 ml Bas-Armagnac
10 ml Triple Sec
5 ml Maraschino liqueur
10 ml Fresh lemon juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Garnish: sugar-rimmed coupe, long spiral of lemon peel

Method

Rim a chilled coupe with caster sugar; carefully line the inside with a long spiral of lemon peel. Shake armagnac, triple sec, maraschino, lemon juice and bitters with ice for 8-10 seconds. Double-strain into the prepared coupe. Serve straight up — the peel and sugar rim are the architecture.

Build

60 ml Bas-Armagnac (VSOP)
30 ml Sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Garnish: brandied cherry

Method

Stir armagnac, sweet vermouth and bitters in a mixing glass with ice for 25 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a single brandied cherry on a pick. The armagnac brings drier, more rustic depth than rye — pair with a richer vermouth.

Build

60 ml Bas-Armagnac (8+ years)
5 ml Demerara syrup (rich 2:1)
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 dash orange bitters
Garnish: orange peel

Method

Combine armagnac, demerara syrup and both bitters in a rocks glass. Add one large ice cube and stir for 30 seconds. Express a wide strip of orange peel over the surface — both oils and the strip itself. The armagnac's prune and pastry notes carry the simplicity of the build.

Build

60 ml Bas-Armagnac (VSOP or older)
5 ml Demerara syrup
3 dashes Peychaud's bitters
1 dash Angostura bitters
Absinthe to rinse the glass
Garnish: expressed lemon peel (do not drop in)

Method

Rinse a chilled rocks glass with a few drops of absinthe — coat the inside, discard the excess. In a mixing glass, stir armagnac, demerara syrup and both bitters with ice for 25 seconds. Strain into the absinthe-rinsed rocks glass — no ice. Express a strip of lemon peel over the surface and discard.

Build

45 ml Bas-Armagnac (VSOP)
22 ml Triple Sec
22 ml Fresh lemon juice
Garnish: lemon twist, sugar rim (optional)

Method

Optionally rim the glass with caster sugar. Shake armagnac, triple sec and lemon juice hard with ice for 10 seconds. Double-strain into a chilled coupe. Express a lemon twist over the surface. The Sidecar is canonically cognac — armagnac swaps in a drier, more rustic spine.

Build

30 ml Bas-Armagnac (substituted for cognac)
30 ml Rye whisky
30 ml Sweet vermouth
5 ml Bénédictine (or herbal liqueur)
1 dash Peychaud's bitters
1 dash Angostura bitters
Garnish: lemon peel, brandied cherry

Method

Combine armagnac, rye, sweet vermouth, herbal liqueur and both bitters in a mixing glass with ice. Stir for 25-30 seconds. Strain over one large ice cube in a rocks glass. Express a lemon peel; garnish with a brandied cherry.