Drinks

The Good Dog

Here’s to your trusty new companion

By Steve Russell
Recipe by Micah LeMon

July 8, 2021

Photo: Steve Russell

You two have a lot of bonding ahead of you: Training. Field work. Picture-perfect points and flushed coveys. Blown shots and bag limits. But for now, it’s enough just to pause and toast this exceptional meeting of man and man’s new best friend, perhaps with a cocktail created especially for Garden & Gun by mixologist Micah LeMon of the Alley Light in Charlottesville, Virginia. The bourbon foreshadows many hunting trips to come, while the berry cordial and herbal fernet deliver an earthy complexity as rewarding as your new relationship. Heck, it’s almost as good as your actual dog!

Ingredients

- 1 oz. Wild Turkey Rare Breed bourbon
- 1 oz. huckleberry cordial (recipe follows)
- ¾ oz. sweet vermouth
- ½ oz. fernet
- Lemon peel twist, for garnish
For the huckleberry cordial
- 2 cups frozen huckleberries (or blueberries)
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup 100 proof vodka
- Bring huckleberries, water, and sugar to a boil, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and strain through a dish towel, squeezing solids to extract juice. Allow to cool and add vodka.

Preparation

Add one large or two medium ice cubes to a tumbler glass. Add all ingredients and stir. Garnish with lemon peel.

Steve Russell is a Garden & Gun contributing editor who also has written for Men’s Journal, Life, Rolling Stone, and Playboy. Born in Mississippi and raised in Tennessee, he resided in New Orleans and New York City before settling down in Charlottesville, Virginia, because it’s far enough south that biscuits are an expected component of a good breakfast.