Damon Boelte, the bar director at Brooklyn’s Prime Meats in Carroll Gardens, has an affinity for naming his original drinks after songs, albums and musicians. His autumnal Champagne cocktail, The Long Hello, takes its name from an obscure prog rock album from the mid-1970s. (What, you don’t remember the record’s eight-minute instrumental track “I’ve Lost My Cat”?) Damon originally created the cocktail for New York magazine’s winter wedding issue, where he described it as the perfect drink with which to toast newlyweds. This is easily one of my favorite seasonal celebratory cocktails, simple to make, elegant, and delicious. The pear notes from the St. Germain play well with the apple brandy, and the bitters and grated nutmeg add a hint of Christmas spice, making this a warm, charming, and oh-so-sippable Champagne cocktail.
Reprinted with permission from Bitters by Brad Thomas Parsons, copyright © 2011. Photo by Ed Anderson © 2011. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.