15 Days of Holiday Drinks (Day 6)

• Each year, I offer readers a lineup of cocktail creations for the holiday season, culled from combing through all sorts of sources -- my own archives, bar books, distillers' ideas, etc. -- even press releases from breathless PR people seeking to get their clients' products mentioned.

This is my own concoction, created about a decade ago and widely published across the country since then. It was devised to please the palates of those looking for something on the milder side but with a depth of flavor. This recipes makes two cocktails.  

DOWD'S MARTEANI
 

3 parts Arizona Green Tea with Honey and Ginseng 

3 parts Chopin potato vodka 

6 drops Angostura Bitters 

1 teaspoon Galliano liqueur 

1 mint leaf 

2 orange slices

Put all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with fresh ice (you can substitute Strega for the Galliano if you like a drier drink, and your favorite grain vodka if you want more of an edge to that component), stir briskly with a cocktail spoon, then strain quickly into a frosted martini glass before the ice melts. Twist the juice from an orange slice into the drink and let it sink in on its own. Garnish with an orange slice and a mint leaf.

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