When you've had your fill of my reader-favorite green chartreuse cocktail, The Verdant Lady, try this bourbon and yellow chartreuse cocktail that gin drinkers will love too. This drink is bright, herbaceous, and boozy with notes of smoke and spice. Adapted with permission from The Daisy in New York City.
This delicious yellow chartreuse cocktail comes straight from a swanky bar in Manhattan that I visited several years ago. It was love at first sip!
It was a bourbon drink but it tasted more like gin – bright, herbaceous, balanced, and almost refreshing, but smokey and spicy at the same time. "What IS this?!" I asked, and the mixologist, Ian, generously shared the recipe with me.
How to Drink Yellow Chartreuse
Not gonna lie: I bought a bottle of yellow chartreuse just for this recipe. It is that good. However, yellow chartreuse can be drunk very cold, or over ice, as an after-dinner tipple. It also adds big flavor in cocktails, and it pairs well with gin and vodka.
Honey & Hearth
But I only ever use yellow chartreuse to make this delicious drink. Feather-light bourbon aged in port barrels, appropriately named Angel's Envy and decorated with angel wings on the bottle, melds with fresh lemon juice, yellow chartreuse, and ginger liqueur, all served up over ice. The coup de grace is a smoking cinnamon stick which you can either extinguish in the drink itself for a smoky kick, or stick it ember-up in your drink and inhale the scent of Christmas-time campfire as you sip. I couldn't decide with brand of ginger liqueur to buy so I made my own, adapted only slightly from Serious Eats.
What does yellow chartreuse taste like?
This herbal spirit has been made by Carthusian monks for centuries and uses 130 (!) different ingredients. It's a sweeter, milder version of its sibling green chartreuse (which also makes delicious cocktails like my reader-favorite Verdant Lady cocktail.) Sweet, spicy, and herbaceous, yellow chartreuse is hugely flavorful with notes of honey, cardamom, anise, sage, and thyme. Though usually drunk cold, the flavor is warming and cozy.
Where to buy yellow chartreuse
Look for yellow chartreuse in well-stocked liquor stores, or order it online from K&L Wines.
Bojon appétit, my sweets! If you make this, I’d love to know. Please leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet.
Yellow Chartreuse Cocktail with Bourbon & Ginger {Honey & Hearth}
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
- 1 ½ ounces (45 ml) Angel’s Envy Bourbon
- ¾ ounce (20 ml) fresh, strained lemon juice
- ¾ ounce (20 ml) ginger liqueur (storebought or homemade, below)
- ¾ ounce (20 ml) yellow Chartreuse
- ice
- cinnamon stick
Instructions
- Combine the bourbon, lemon juice, ginger liqueur, and chartreuse in a cocktail shaker.
- Fill with ice and shake or stir for a few seconds to chill the drink. Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice.
- Light the cinnamon stick on fire briefly and extinguish in the cocktail to garnish.
Notes
Nutrition
Ginger Liqueur
Print Recipe / Pin RecipeIngredients
- 2 ounces (55 g) ginger root, peeled and sliced into thin coins
- 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
- 1 cup (200 g) sugar
- 1 ½ cups (355 ml) water
- 1 ½ cups (355 ml) vodka
- 1 lemon (preferably Meyer)
Instructions
- Combine the ginger, vanilla, sugar, and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the ginger is tender, about 20 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
- Pour the syrup along with the ginger and vanilla into a sterilized 1-quart mason jar and add the vodka. Use a T-shaped vegetable peeler to peel the yellow zest of the lemon away in long strips and add it to the jar as well. Seal the jar and let the syrup sit for 24 hours.
- Remove the vanilla pod and steep the mixture an additional 24 hours. Strain the syrup through a coffee filter, discarding the solids and storing the liqueur in a sterilized jar; you may need to strain it in batches and change the filter several times. Let sit for 24 more hours to mellow the flavors.
- Store the liqueur in a cool, dry place for up to 1 year, or in the refrigerator. If the mixture becomes cloudy or develops an off-flavor, discard.
Anu says
Wow... This is a must try!
Janet says
Sylvester and I have some brief and specific thoughts (instructions?) about how to structure your next visit. Xxoo
Alanna says
I hope they involve snuggles!
Cee says
You need to visit Philadelphia!
Alanna says
I'd love that!
Lili @ Travelling oven says
So many beautiful photos in this post! Seems you had an amazing time!
Alanna says
Aw thank you Lili!
Jay Doane says
Sylvester pics or it didn't happen!
(Review provided by my husband Jay who is a whole human being in his own right.)
Janet says
Sylvester sez he can hook you up privately.
Alanna says
YES PLZ!
Ben Myhre says
I love the idea of lighting the cinnamon stick on fire and putting it out in the cocktail. What a cool way to add a little smokey flavor to a cocktail. Beautiful!
Alanna says
I thought that was a genius move, too - those clever mixologists!
Rachael @ Rachael's Foodie Life says
this cocktail is a must try! i adore bourbon cocktails but i love when they are unexpected, this sounds divine can't wait to try it
Alanna says
That's totally how I felt when I tasted this! Please let me know how you like it. :)
Sabrina says
yes, very nice cinnamon stick twist! Love the flavors here, beautifully photographed too, thank you for this drink!
Alanna says
Aw, you bet!
Terry says
Did you mean to include the sugar in step 1 of the ginger liqueur recipe?
Terry says
Also, how do you use the lemon? It's in the ingredients but not the instructions.
Alanna says
Thank you for catching these errots! I did add the sugar in step one - updated! And the instructions got wonky when I transferred this recipe to my new recipe plug in, so I've updated them to the original, including what to do with the lemon. Please let me know how you like this! Thanks again for the note.
Guy Hide says
Hey Alanna
Loving your blog. Just wondering what camera you used for these photos? Can practically taste the sushi burritos from those images!
Thanks,
Guy
Alanna says
Aw thanks! I actually used my travel camera - Canon Rebel T2i and a 50mm lens. It's lighter to carry around than my Mark III. I love how that photo came out too! :)
Christopher Coleman says
Always good to have more cocktail recipes and I shall try these. But, I strongly disagree with you about drinking liqueurs like this one or so many others (benedictine, grand marnier, and the like) chilled or over ice. They are not crafted to be drunk cold and chilling them damages and reduces their flavours. Of course, it is every person to their own taste, but it is a sin to kill a good drink.
Alanna says
I'll definitely try it neat next time in that case. Thanks for the tip!