Weathered Axe

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Cocktail History

The Weathered Axe is an autumn cocktail that was created by Danny Shapiro at Scofflaw in Chicago, Illinois. It’s served at the bar in multiple forms year-round but is traditionally made with bourbon, lemon, citrus, Cocchi Americano, ginger, and absinthe. What’s changed up at different times of the year is its garnish; it calls for fresh mint in the warm months and a sprig of singed rosemary when it’s cold.

Cocktail Ingredients

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:

Bourbon: This is a type of whiskey made in the United States with at least 51% corn, grains, malted barley, and water. I used Wild Turkey 101 Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

Lemon Juice: This is the liquid juice of a lemon. I used freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Combier L’Original Liqueur d’Orange: This is a liqueur made with bitter oranges, beets, spices, sugar, and alcohol.

Cocchi Americano: This is an apéritif made with wine, citrus, honey, spices, sugar, and alcohol.

Ginger Syrup: This is a sweetener made with ginger, white sugar, gum arabic powder, and water. I made mine using this sous vide recipe.

Absinthe: This is a spirit made with anise, wormwood, fennel, botanicals, and alcohol. I used Great Lakes Distillery Amerique 1912 Absinthe Verte.

Rosemary Sprig: This is an evergreen herb.

Bartending Tools

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:

Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. I used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Boston Shaker: This is used to shake ingredients. I used the Boston shaker from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Hawthorne Strainer: This is used to strain out ice and solid ingredients after the cocktail is shaken. I used the A Bar Above Hawthorne Strainer.

Paring Knife: This is used to cut ingredients. I used the OXO Good Grips 3.5 Inch Paring Knife.

Juicer: This is used to juice citrus. I used the ALEEHAI Manual Fruit Juicer.

Atomizer: This is use to rinse the glass with an ingredient. I used the True Martini Atomizer.

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Tasting Notes

This cocktail has the following flavor profile:

• Appearance: Brown-ish golden color

• Aroma: Absinthe, rosemary, and whiskey

• Taste: Citrus-forward flavor paired with oaky and spicy bourbon and Cocchi Americano

• Finish: Noticeable ginger burn and anise

Kendall’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Kendall’s Take: “The taste of this cocktail reminded me a lot of the Mountain Man, which I already loved after trying it for the first time. I’m not sure if I like this one or the other better! I’m still leaning towards the Mountain Man because I really enjoyed the addition of maple syrup in that recipe, but the bourbon, citrus, and ginger is such a yummy combination in the Weathered Axe too. You’ll just have to try them to see which is your favorite!”

Recipe

This cocktail recipe was adapted from The Essential Cocktail Book: A Complete Guide to Modern Drinks by the editors of PUNCH and Megan Krigbaum.

This post contains affiliate links, meaning we make a small commission each time you purchase a product using our links. Product images sourced from Amazon Product Advertising API. Amazon affiliate links last updated on 2025-04-16.