Essex’s Red Medicine

Image: Olivia Brent
Bar Manager: Gary Abts
Essex 1421 NW 7oth St, Ballard, 206-838-1960; essexbarseattle.com
1. Garnish
Brandied cherries—made in house. “Anything we can create ourselves, we will attempt to.”
2. Rye
Old Overholt, aged in oak barrels for four months, to impart a woody flavor.
3. Housemade Fernet
Abts and owner Brandon Pettit made “dozens and dozens” of trial versions of this herbal liqueur. They settled on a recipe that’s less minty and more chamomile-forward than the ubiquitous Fernet Branca.
4. Rhubarb
“It’s not necessarily a syrup; it’s a little heartier, a little thicker than that.”
5. Rachel’s Ginger Beer
The rye, fernet, and rhubarb are mixed, strained over ice into a Collins glass, and finished with this bracing ginger beer, previously produced next door at Delancey before outgrowing that kitchen.