Delmarva Cocktail #2

* 2 ounces rye
* 1/2 ounce dry vermouth
* 1/2 ounce white crème de cacao
* 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
* 1 fresh mint leaf for garnish

Shake all ingredients in an ice-filled shaker and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a mint leaf.

I came across this one in Gary Regan’s Joy of Mixology when I was looking for something to do with some white crème de cacao I’ve had sitting around forever (I don’t even remember buying it, much less what I originally bought it for). He created it based on the original Delmarva cocktail which uses crème de menthe.

It sounded a little weird but I thought it worth a try. It tasted a little weird too, honestly, but not bad at all. Just weird. The lemon was a little overpowering at first so I added an additional 1/4 ounce crème de cacao to bring out the chocolate a bit more. It was still very lemony but the chocolate notes made it interesting.

Will I make it again? Probably not, but I’d drink one if it were offered.