It's a bitter tale, my friends...

Necessity, as it is often said, is the mother of invention. In this particular case, I really wanted to mix up a Fancy Free, but had run out of Angostura bitters and Luxardo Maraschino, and forgot to pick up Angostura at the liquor store when I went to get the Maraschino. (Make that shopping list, boys and girls...)

As it turned out, the liquor store was out of Luxardo, but they had Lazzaroni Maraschino, which, if the Internet is to be believed, is less funky than Luxardo, with a sweet black cherry aroma.

I also remembered that I had some Underberg bitters in the cabinet that could do in a pinch.

So a slosh of this, a bit of that, couple dashes of the other, and you have the (Fancy) Free Association Cocktail, a slightly different take on the Fancy Free.

Now, about the Underberg bitters... you can't get this stuff in anything but small, 2-ounce single-serve bottles. It's a German digestif made from aromatic herbs and spices from 43 countries and is meant to be downed like a shot after dinner. I found it on Amazon a while back, but it's possible it's available locally in your area if you know where to look.

I've tried Underberg in a couple other cocktails, and as I always do, I sampled it straight from the bottle to get an idea of what the flavors are like. I do this with all new liqueurs and bitters, and usually don't regret it.

Let's just say, I won't be doing that again. It's fine when mixed in a cocktail, but to want to down two whole ounces of this stuff after a delicious meal... no thank you.

I ended up mixing several versions of this before landing on the right amount of Underberg and peach bitters in the drink. It's really easy to get too much Underberg, and then your entire drink just tastes like, well, Underberg. I recommend experimentation, but found the 1/2 teaspoon to be just about right.

Overall, I found it to be an enjoyable take on the Fancy Free and will mix it up from time to time when I want something a little different. If you mix one up, I'd be interested to hear what you think!

Until next time,