“If at first you don’t succeed, failure may be your style.” 
― Quentin Crisp

I was not immediately convinced of St. Germain elderflower liquor. I found its sweetness a bit cloying in my first experimentations, until I learned how to tame it.

I created this cocktail in honor of the great writer and raconteur, Quentin Crisp. Crisp had a sharp, biting wit, tempered with a grandfather-like kindness; this cocktail attempts to represent that dichotomy, with the tartness of grapefruit mellowed with the mellow sweetness of St. Germain.

“The Quentin Crisp Cocktail”
2 oz Gin
¾ oz grapefruit juice
.5oz St. Germain liqueur
¼ oz Grenadine*
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Combine in a shaker with ice; shake, strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with thick piece of grapefruit zest.

*For better flavor, make your own grenadine.

By the way, here’s a charming Q&A with Quentin Crisp from 1980. And be sure to read Quentin’s classic autobiography, The Naked Civil Servant.