Amber Trinity

2 cocktails: 6 cl amaretto, 6 cl cognac, 6 cl sweet vermouth, ice.

A simple recipe with a simple name for this wonderful amber, shining threesome, mixed from amaretto, cognac and sweet vermouth. The name also reflects the nature of your three essential and universal cocktail ingredients having sweet, bitter and alcoholic character.

The science about this particular 'trinity'? Not much that comes to mind except what I wrote in the last blog entry about the almond taste of amaretto. But then, there is, of course, the infamous codename of the first atom bomb test, chosen by the physicist Robert Oppenheimer in reference to a poem by the medieval English poet John Donne. Donne's 28 stanza long litany is a reflection on the relationship between the poet and the holy entities, specifically the trinity in stanza IV, union of father, son and holy spirit. Why choose a religious conundrum as codename for the first test of the most destructive and powerful weapon ever born out of the ingenuity and curiosity of mankind?

The physicist Freeman Dyson referred to scientists efforts toward the making of the atomic bomb as a Faustian pact with the Devil from which, once you were engaged, there was no turning back, no escape. Perhaps it was ambivalence about the trinity as spiritual metaphor, representing the divine attributes of love, power and knowledge, of which the last two clearly propelled humanity into the nuclear age. However, does human frailty necessarily render these traits mutually exclusive? Or can there be three and one at the same time? Certainly Oppenheimer expressed his ambivalence regarding what the making of the atomic bomb had actually achieved, but not regarding the duty to develop this weapon during the war with Germany. At the time, the bomb was believed to be key to addressing the Nazi scourge, which was recognized as a threat to human civilization as a whole.

In any case, this leads us down a very dark but undeniably fascinating alley of science history. I should stop rambling about such a heavy subject in a light themed blog about 'cocktails'.

My primary choice of amaretto brand is the Italian Disaronno with its supposedly nearly 500 year old recipe. This works well with Belsazar's 'Red' vermouth and with a decently priced Rémy Martin cognac variety. Like to fine tune for the perfect mixture? Try increasing vermouth slightly at the expense of the cognac. Mix in glas or shaker, add ice and enjoy.

Zum Wohl, cheers.