When Arvid Brown and his group have been creating the cocktail listing at Portland, Maine’s Room for Enchancment, he thought again to recommendation he acquired from an early bar mentor: “You possibly can by no means get mad at a Cosmo. Regardless of how good your home cocktails are, you’re all the time going to make Cosmos since individuals will all the time get them organized.” So, he thought, Why don’t we make our Cosmo considered one of our flagship drinks?
The intention was to enchantment not solely to the client who orders Cosmos at each bar, but additionally to “nerdy cocktail pals who would possibly by no means ordinarily name for a Cosmo,” says Brown. That meant rethinking every ingredient. “We checked out what it’s that folks like about it: It’s pink, it’s served up, it’s citrusy, it’s refreshing and it’s bought just a little tartness,” Brown says. “We tried to reengineer these flavors with extra craft components.”
The vodka was straightforward: “St. George Spirits makes a extremely glorious however very reasonably priced citrus vodka,” Brown says, citing its nuanced taste, which incorporates bergamot. For the orange liqueur, Brown ordered greater than a half-dozen varieties and tried them in varied 50/50 blends. The profitable combo marries Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao, which has a Cognac base for added depth, and Clément Créole Shrubb, which brings richness and spice to the glass. The mix additionally helps remedy what Brown sees as a difficulty with Cosmopolitans—they are typically skinny. “We thought of learn how to give it roundness and physique, and Creole Shrubb was that ingredient.”
Brown knew he wanted one thing extra complicated than juice for the cranberry element. After making an attempt varied syrups and macerations, he settled on mixing equal elements cranberries, sugar and water in a Vitamix till clean, then fine-straining the combination and including a measure of Campari. This “cranpari” cordial is cranberry-forward, “however the Campari provides depth and bitterness and amps up the colour of the drink,” in accordance with Brown. The ultimate contact is just a few drops of saline answer, which Brown likes including to shaken sours. “After we have been doing tastings, we made one with salt and one with out and hands-down we preferred it higher with the salt. It amplifies the flavors.”
With its sneakily complicated taste profile, the Cosmopolitan matches proper into the easygoing vibe at Room for Enchancment, the place each drink, regardless of how widespread, is executed at a excessive stage with out turning into too fussy. The bar’s dive-y atmosphere and lowbrow meals menu—everyone seems to be consuming Maine pink snapper sizzling canine and crunching cheese balls—might make it a shocking spot to seek out a number of the greatest cocktails on the town. But it surely is smart that this dichotomy was Brown’s plan all alongside. Like all the pieces at Room for Enchancment, the cranpari Cosmo “turns your expectations in your head.”
