Do You Ride With Team Cynar?
You either get Cynar, or you don't. And once you get it, there's a whole wide, weird world to enjoy.
The other night, I ended up at Clandestino, my favorite cocktail bar in Logroño, Spain. I knew exactly what I wanted, the house speciality: Cynar Julep. This cocktail is originally from Argentina. While obviously it’s a take on the Mint Julep (with Cynar instead of whiskey, along with the addition of grapefruit), the original recipe calls for grapefruit soda (such as Fresca). In its more sophisticated rendition, with fresh grapefruit juice, it’s an opportunity to use those Moscow Mule tins your mom gave you for Christmas.
A Cynar Julep seems like ideal cocktail to be drinking as the calendar turns from August to September—a perfect transition spirit in the move from hot-weather to cool-weather drink. Besides, if you’ve paid attention, it’s also low-key been the summer of Cynar. Yes, yes, the summer as been brat and demure and all of that. But in between, my trendspotting colleague at The New Review, Sara Keene, declared the Cynar Spritz to be the drink of summer.
If you don’t know what Cynar is, that’s ok. Team Cynar is very welcoming and always recruiting new members. Cynar is an Italian amaro that’s higher proof than Aperol but lower proof than Campari, and is made with a dozen botanicals, along with macerated artichokes. Is Cynar an aperitif? Yes. Is it a digestif? Also, yes. Is Cynar good in cocktails? No, it’s great in cocktails (see six examples below).
I guess the artichoke on the label, or the idea of drinking artichokes, could potentially turn someone off. Or cause one to ask oneself, “Am I the type of person who would enjoy a brown, bittersweet liqueur made with artichokes? What does that say about me?” I encourage anyone to practice this level of quality self-interrogation.
Like a lot of people on Instagram, I adore the cheeky, edgy, sexy, flirtatious work of Spanish-born, Miami-based artist Javier Mayoral, aka @pulpbrother. Recently, I’ve been noticing a recurring motif in Mayoral’s art: A bottle of Cynar regularly pops up in unexpected ways.
I reached out to Mayoral and asked him, “What’s the deal with Cynar in your paintings?” At first, he recounted a childhood memory: “My grandma used to give me one ounce of it when I had an upset stomach. It sounds awful but it really worked.”
Now, as an adult, he says, “I just love it. It’s an underrated and misunderstood aperitif. But I love when people get it.”
Generally, the Cynar bottle in Mayoral’s work sits on the sidelines of an off-kilter or awkward sexual scenario—which, within its own logic, always makes sense. Mayoral definitely gets the Cynar vibe. He gets my vote as captain of Team Cynar.
When I suggested this, Mayoral sent me several mid-20th century images of actual European bicycle teams, actually sponsored by Cynar. Check out the sweet jerseys, track pants, and those little cyclist hats that fold up in the front.
If anyone’s opening a new bar and needs a fresh concept, feel free to grab this Cynar aesthetic for the staff uniform. You’re welcome!
Six Cocktails For Team Cynar
Cyn-Cin
There are many Negroni variations, but this one, subbing out the Campari for Cynar, and the sweet for dry vermouth, is my absolute favorite.
1 ounce Cynar
1 ounce dry vermouth
1 ounce London dry gin
Twist of orange peel, for garnish
Combine Cynar, vermouth, gin in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir vigorously, then strain into a cocktail glass. Express orange peel over the top, then add as garnish.
Cynar Julep
Mint leaves
Soda water
2 ounces Cynar
1 ounce grapefruit juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
¼ ounce lemon juice
¼ ounce simple syrup
Grapefruit slice
In a rocks glass or julep/mule tin, gently muddle the mint leaves with splash soda water. Add Cynar, grapefruit juice, bitters, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Fill glass with crushed ice, then sizzle to mix. Top with more soda water and garnish with mint leaves and grapefruit slice. Serve with straw.
Little Madrid
This is variation on a variation—specifically the Little Italy, which is itself a variation of a Manhattan. Instead of rye whiskey, it calls for Brandy de Jerez (such as Lepanto, Cardenal Mendoza, or Gran Duque d'Alba).
2 ounces Spanish brandy
¾ ounce sweet vermouth
½ ounce Cynar
Combine brandy, vermouth, and Cynar in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir vigorously, then strain into a cocktail glass.
The Dunaway
Cynar is an amazing mixing partner with sherry. You can see it here in this cocktail created by Misty Kalkofen (which she named because it’s sassy and sophisticated, just like Faye Dunaway). Kalkofen’s original calls for fino, but I also like the way amontillado works here. Note the odd measurement of sherry.
2 ¼ ounces fino or amontillado sherry
½ ounce Cynar
¼ ounce maraschino liqueur
2 dashes orange bitters
Twist of lemon peel, for garnish
Combine sherry, Cynar, maraschino liqueur, and bitters in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir vigorously, then strain into a cocktail glass. Express lemon peel over the top, then add as garnish.
Sage Remarks
Created by Jake Sherry for Isolation Proof Gin (which I highly recommend). The original calls for the Italian amaro Braulio, but come on. Cynar gives this the vibe we’re looking for.
4 fresh sage leaves
2 ounces gin
¾ ounce Cynar
¼ ounce egg white
¼ ounce simple syrup
Lightly muddle the sage in a cocktail shaker. Add all ingredients except ice to shaker and dry shake for 15 seconds. Add ice and shake again until well-chilled. Strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with a sage leaf.
Coconut Hanky Panky
Bimini Coconut Gin was one of the most surprising new gins of recent years. The original recipe here calls for Fernet Branca, but I found the Fernet flavor profile take over the drink (as it so often does). Substitute Cynar, and enjoy.
2 ounces Bimini Coconut
½ ounce Cynar
½ ounce sweet vermouth
½ ounce dry vermouth
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled. Strain into a stemmed cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon peel, expressing the oil over the drink.
I have been team Cynar for a long time. I am wild about this art.
In the recipe for Cyn-Cin, the garnish starts as orange in the ingredients and changes to lemon in the method. Suspect orange was intended, but can you confirm?