Waterbury Cocktail

I found this bottle of Christian Brothers Brandy that dates back to the early eighties at the latest. My mother-in-law says it is from a trip her parents took to California, so it could be even earlier. Anyway, this bottle is from an older time where even inexpensive products from distilleries were quite good when compared to today's standards.

This is because tastes were different back then. The flagship brandy of Christian Brothers was oakier and closer to whiskey, which I'm sure was its main competitor. Now the Christian Brothers VSOP is so much closer to cognac.

Now for the cocktail. Waterbury is grand, elegant egg foam cocktail that hits all the right notes. There's lime juice, but it's not overly sour. In addition to the oakiness of the vintage brandy, I also used a nice grenadine that's made with real pomegranate juice and cane sugar. It didn't change the color of the drink to an obnoxious pink like Rose's does, but the beige of this Waterbury Cocktail is classic like the Brandy.

• 2 oz. brandy (vintage Christian Brothers used)
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1 tsp. grenadine
• 1 tsp sugar syrup
• 1 egg white

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake to chill, then strain out ice and re-shake to add foam. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass (wine glass pictured).