Enjoyed: Tuesday, December 31, 2024

Listed on the menu: Yes, as “Divot Stomp Old Fashion”

Ingredients: Catoctin Rye Gin, Fee Brothers Orange Bitters, Muddled Fruit, Ginger Beer

The occasion: For several years now, our little “Drinking Club” has gone out for a New Year’s Eve supper. We have enjoyed re-visiting restaurants that are local “institutions” and Hamiltons’ on the Downtown Mall fit the bill. Our group of six savored a fabulous five course dinner and a wide variety of cocktails before we headed back to M’s home bar where we rang in 2025 with champagne and a few beers.

My rating: *** out of 5. I had to order this cocktail strictly because of the name, but the ingredients were far from the traditional Old Fashioned recipe. Is there even such a thing as “rye gin”? I could not find that product on the Catoctin Creek website per se (great place to visit, by the way), but wow, apparently rye can be used to make gin, according to other websites. I should have asked for a shot! As a stand alone cocktail, I would give it four and a half stars, since the gin and the ginger beer made for an interesting tickle on the tongue. Points to the bartending staff for originality, but I believe an Old Fashioned needs a “brown” base.

Final thoughts: I enjoy going out on New Year’s Eve for the people watching. We saw some very glittery clothing, too. And of course, our friends make the evening even more fun and memorable, especially when one couple shares surprising yet joyous family news at the start of the meal, when we each fortuitously had a glass of bubbly in hand. A toast to joyous news, and a toast to 2025.