Jupiter's Acorn

From the wonderful Craigie on Main in Cambridge, with a nod to the original poster of the recipe.

1 oz Barbancourt 15 Year Rum
1 oz Nux Alpina Walnut Liqueur
1/2 oz Punt e Mes (or Sweet Vermouth)
1/2 oz Benedictine
1 Egg
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash Mole Bitters

Combine in a glass and shake for 5-10 seconds. Add ice and shake for 20-30 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass and top with grated nutmeg.

Hop Toad

This recipe comes from The Joy of Mixology, and it's a deceptively complex drink.

1 1/2 oz Dark Rum
1 oz Apricot Brandy
1/2 oz Lime Juice (Fresh, please)
1 dash Angostura

Combine all of the ingredients in a glass and shake for 15-20 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Enjoy.

Don's Little Bitter

File this under "bizarre" or "lol wut." A recent trend, at least in Boston, is using a healthy dose of bitters (>1 oz) in drinks. Don Lee of NYC's pdt created this strange concoction.

1/4 oz Peychaud's bitters
1/4 oz Angostura Orange bitters
1/2 oz Angostura bitters
1/2 oz Lemon juice
1/2 oz Fernet
1/2 oz Simple syrup
1 oz Rum (preferably Barbancourt 8 year)

Combine in an ice-filled glass and shake for 15-20 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass or serve down in a chilled, empty rocks glass.

Enjoy.

Dark and Stormy

A great drink that is the traditional cocktail of Bermuda, the Dark and Stormy is a relaxing and refreshing beverage. As mentioned before, AJ Stephan's is a spectacular ginger beer, but use whatever cane or sugar based local brew is best. While Gosling's Black Seal Rum is the traditional rum to use, Myer's will do in a pinch.

2 oz Gosling's Black Seal Rum
3 oz Ginger Beer

Build in an ice-filled hi-ball. Stir, and garnish with a lime wedge.

Enjoy.

Mai Tai

I refer to these as "Might Dies" because that's how you feel after a few. Trader Vic, the grandfather of all things tiki, created this drink sometime in the 1940s. Since then, there have been hundreds of variations, most of which suck. The only thing constant between the original and the crap you get served in a tacky Polynesian restaurant is rum. This recipe comes from Robert Hess, and it is a very close approximation of the original.

1 oz White Rum
1 oz Gold Rum
1/2 oz Orange Curaçao
1/2 oz Orgeat syrup
1/2 oz Lime juice
1 oz Dark Rum (float)

The technique here is a little strange. Instead of shaking vigorously and straining, add all the ingredients (except the dark rum) to a rocks glass, fill almost completely with ice. Pour the entire contents of the glass into a shaker and shake for no more than 10 seconds, just enough to mix all the ingredients and give them a good chill. Pour the entire contents of the shaker back into the rocks glass. Float the dark rum on top. Garnish with a sprig of mint, a speared piece of pineapple and maraschino cherry (use the crappy ones here), and whatever else you have lying around.

Enjoy.