Recorded for the first time in 1934, numerous artists have covered the song "Stompin' at the Savoy" over the years (I prefer the version from Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong). The song's subject was the Savoy Ballroom in New York City. Just as the Savoy Ballroom has a rich dance and music history, the similarly named Savoy Hotel in London has a rich cocktail history. For many years the legendary Ada Coleman, creator of the Hanky Panky, ruled the hotel's famous American Bar. Combining Coleman's sense of cocktail style with an easygoing, comfortable atmosphere and friendly, knowledgeable people, the Savoy Society in Savannah is a place where you want to have a round or two.

A gracious and calm small city, Savannah is a great town for cocktailians. Our recent trip to Savannah wasn't our first. In 1995 Ms. Cocktail Den and I first experienced the deceptively powerful Chatham Artillery Punch, a local libation, and in 2018 we discovered the Alley Cat Lounge.

But let's go back to the Savoy Society. Jane Fishel, the self-anointed Queen of Fernet (a bracing amaro used in cocktails such as the Newark), and Matt Garoppolo are the driving forces behind Savoy Society. Their brainchild has a wide range of creative and approachable cocktails.

For example, the Eyes Without A Face (pictured above; as I'm a Billy Idol fan, I had to try this) is a clever tequila based cocktail incorporating curaçao, carrot, ginger, and tamarind. No trip to the Savoy Society is complete without an Ada Coleman, a delicious sour cherry gin based twist on Coleman's famous creation. If tantalizing your taste buds isn't enough, just listen. The music? All vinyl. All the time. You gotta respect that.

So when are you going to go stompin' at the Savoy Society in Savannah?

Call it a merry go round, call it a carousel, it has delighted kids around the world for years. Adult versions such as the Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone in New Orleans have delighted adults (including me and Ms. Cocktail Den) for years. Douglas Miller created the Merry Go Round as an homage to revolving bars, and Artist with a Cocktail on Instagram introduced me to it.

1.5 ounces rye
.75 ounces dry vermouth
.75 ounces yellow Chartreuse
.75 ounces lemon juice (1/2 lemon)

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake in a circular motion again and again, and strain into a chilled glass. Lemon wheel garnish optional.

Rye provides a sturdy base for the Merry Go Round. As we've seen in drinks such as the Old Pal or Scofflaw, rye pairs well with dry vermouth, and as we've seen with drinks such as the Greenpoint or Diamondback, it also pairs well with yellow Chartreuse. Considering Chartreuse's relative scarcity, I understand if you want to cut back on it, but you may want to add a touch of super simple syrup to keep the Merry Go Round from becoming too spicy or tart. If you want some non-syrupy background music as you savor a Merry Go Round, in no particular order I suggest"Round and Round" by Ratt, "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive, or "Right Round" by Flo Rida (basically the theme song to the first The Hangover movie).

So are you ready to go on this Merry Go Round?

Is someone really excited? Is someone seriously muscled? Is someone or something really FU as in the old military acronyms SNAFU or FUBAR? Depending on context, the phrase "all jacked up" refers to any, some, or all of those things. In 2016 Jordan Brower at Mayahuel in New York City created the All Jacked Up, and the great Artist With A Cocktail on Instagram introduced me to it.

1 ounce mezcal
1 ounce sweet vermouth
.75 ounces apple brandy
.25 ounces Fernet Branca
.25 ounces maraschino liqueur

Combine in a mixing glass with ice, stir with overly strong and energetic rhythm, and strain into a chilled glass. Apple fan garnish optional.

Subtle is not a word I'd use to describe the All Jacked Up. Complex is. Mezcal (tequila's smokier cousin used in drinks such as the Pura Vida), sweet vermouth (a key component of classics such as the Boulevardier), and apple brandy (a mainstay of drinks such as the Pan Am Clipper), combine better than you might think to give the All Jacked Up a robust foundation. Comparing apples to apples, apple brandy and applejack are similar but not the same, and either works well here. A touch of Fernet Branca and maraschino liqueur add a little bracing bitterness and sweetness.

One (at most two) All Jacked Up will get you jacked up in a positive way. More than that, you might be looking at the negative way. Be positive and enjoy!

You may get carded at a bar, and you need a card to check things out of a library. Combine an impressive curated spirit collection with knowledgeable people and a library theme, and you get the Brandy Library in New York City. Located in the Tribeca neighborhood down the block from the firehouse featured in Ghostbusters (really), Ms. Cocktail Den and I recently spent some time at the Brandy Library.

Just as a library can open a person's mind to new ideas, books, and authors, the Brandy Library gives you a great opportunity to expand your drinking horizons. Even though its name suggests it exclusively focuses on one spirit, the Brandy Library has an extensive selection of spirits not named brandy. For example, Ms. Cocktail Den tasted some mezcals. If you're into brandy or curious about it, whether it's cognac, armagnac (from the Armagnac region of France), torched Dutch grapes from countries around the world, or another fruit based spirit, odds are good you'll find something you like. As another example, with some friendly guidance from Ethan, I experimented with a tasting flight of calvados, a brandy hailing from the Normandy region of France (as in the Flower of Normandy) made from apples or pears. And don't forget the cocktails. I enjoyed the Musket, a concoction of armagnac, fig, honey, and lemon.

The selection list at the Brandy Library is an easy to read book, and you don't need to know the Dewey Decimal System (yes, I am that old) to understand it. Maybe you'll like something you try, maybe you won't. At least you tried. Experience the Brandy Library, and declare "I ain't afraid of no library!"

Operating from 1937 to 1966, the Hawaiian Room was a popular venue featuring Hawaiian entertainment alongside Hawaiian and Polynesian food. Located in the gorgeous art deco Lexington Hotel in New York City (Ms. Cocktail Den and I have stayed there), the Hawaiian Room was a "see and be seen" kind of place, like the Brown Derby in Hollywood. This was its eponymous cocktail.

1 ounce applejack
1 ounce clear rum
.25 ounces Cointreau
1 ounce pineapple juice
.25 ounces super simple syrup

Combine in a mixing glass with ice, stir with some island rhythm, and strain into a chilled glass, preferably coupe. Orchid garnish optional.

The Hawaiian Room is a cocktail in which I suggest using the exact ingredients specified. Substitutions will throw it off. For example, applejack, a spirit from New Jersey (there's a reason it is the base of drinks such as the Jersey Girl), has a lighter taste and color than apple brandy. The same goes for Cointreau (used in drinks such as my Gintriguing) compared to other triple secs such as Grand Marnier (used in drinks such as the Burnt Fuselage). As with cocktails in the Den that use citrus juice, use fresh pineapple juice if you can.

Put it all together, and the Hawaiian Room evokes the relaxed vibe of Hawaii with an undertone of New York City dynamism. So when are you going to enter this room?

The Boulevardier was an English language literary magazine in Paris in the 1920s. Erskine Gwynne, the editor, was a loyal customer of Harry McElhone, who founded the eponymous Harry's New York Bar. Even though it's not clear if Gwynne or McElhone created the Boulevardier, McElhone mentioned it in a footnote in his 1927 book Barflies and Cocktails.

1 ounce bourbon
1 ounce sweet vermouth
1 ounce Campari

Combine in a mixing glass with ice, stir with some American je ne sais quoi, and strain into a chilled glass. Lemon or orange peel garnish optional.

Fundamentally a Boulevardier is a Negroni with bourbon instead of gin. Another way of viewing it is that it's a modified Manhattan with Campari instead of Angostura bitters. Like other cocktails such as the Old Pal (which McElhone created for another one of his loyal customers), the Bijou, and the Last Word, the Boulevardier is a bartender’s dream because of its simple ratio and short ingredient list. If you want to emphasize the bourbon, a variation I like uses one and half ounces of bourbon and .75 ounces each of the sweet vermouth and Campari. The Boulevardier lends itself to tinkering. For example, add some molé bitters, and you have a Left Hand.

Looking for a simple and laudable cocktail? Have a Boulevardier and look no further.

Greenpoint is a neighborhood in Brooklyn. In 2006 Michael McIlroy created the Greenpoint, a variation on the Brooklyn.  I wasn't in Greenpoint when I was introduced to its namesake cocktail. That happened in the Lower East Side in Manhattan, specifically at Attaboy, where McIlroy and Sam Ross (who created the Paper Plane and the Penicillin) operate.

2 ounces rye
.5 ounces yellow Chartreuse
.5 ounces sweet vermouth
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 dash orange bitters

Combine in a mixing glass with ice, stir with a bit of Brooklyn hustle, and strain into a chilled glass. Lemon peel garnish optional.

Spirits and bitters converge to make the Greenpoint a balanced and spirit forward cocktail. The rye stiffens the drink's spine. To me the Chartreuse is the key element separating the Greenpoint from other variations on the Manhattan or the Brooklyn. Joining rye and yellow Chartreuse works well here, just as it does in the Diamondback. If combining rye and green Chartreuse intrigues you (it should if you like strong drinks), try the Final Rye or the Purgatory.

To paraphrase the Beastie Boys song, no sleep 'til Greenpoint!

Known as the "City of Light," Paris is one of the great cities of the world. Ms. Cocktail Den and I have been fortunate enough to explore iconic sites such as the Eiffel Tower and the Champs Élysées, as well as cocktail landmarks to know We'll Always Have Paris. In 1930 the Parisian cocktail appeared in The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock. I slightly adapted the recipe.

1.25 ounces gin
1.25 ounces dry vermouth
.75 ounces crème de cassis

Combine in a mixing glass with ice, stir with Parisian joie de vivre, and strain into a chilled glass.

Crème de cassis is a blackcurrant liqueur used in cocktails such as the classic Kir. It's pretty sweet, so you need something to counterbalance it. That's where the gin and dry vermouth, foundations of the classic Martini, come in.  Aside from a Burnt Fuselage or Scofflaw, normally I wouldn't use more than an ounce of dry vermouth in any cocktail, but it works well in a Parisian (the original has equal proportions of all ingredients, so if you prefer sweeter drinks make it that way). Its rich purple color reminds me of the liveliness of Paris and its people. 

Want your cocktail life to shine even brighter? Have a Parisian.

You may have made and thrown one as a kid. As an adult, you can drink one. The Paper Plane flew onto the scene in 2008 when Sam Ross, the New York City bartender who created the Penicillin, created it for the opening of The Violet Hour bar in Chicago. Named for the M.I.A. song Paper Planes, it took off in Chicago and New York and made its way onto cocktail menus around the world.

.75 ounces bourbon
.75 ounces Amaro Nonino
.75 ounces Aperol
Juice from 1/2 lemon (.75 ounces)

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake to the theme from Rocky (the tune's title is "Gonna Fly Now"), and strain into a chilled glass, preferably a coupe. Lemon peel garnish optional.

Following the equal proportions of four ingredients format of the Last Word, the Paper Plane is easy to make (the same goes for the Naked and Famous). Bourbon and Aperol, used in cocktails such as the Venetian Kiss, are easy to acquire. Amaro Nonino, a bittersweet grappa based amaro from northern Italy, can be tougher to find, but thankfully we have the Internet. Originally the Paper Plane used Campari, but within days of unveiling it Ross changed his mind and used Aperol instead. The result is a really well balanced cocktail. In terms of balance and format, the Paper Plane more resembles the thematically similar Burnt Fuselage than the Aviation.

Looking to rack up some cocktail frequent flier miles? Then it's time to board the Paper Plane.

Peligroso is the Spanish word for dangerous. The Peligroso comes from the excellent La Factoría bar in San Juan. Ms. Cocktail Den and I visited La Factoria many times when we went to Puerto Rico in 2019 for part one and part two of Tales of La Isla del Encanto. Like the original Peligroso, the danger in my minor adaptation only lies in its smoothness.

1.5 ounces clear rum (I like Don Q)
.5 ounces Campari
.5 ounces Averna
.25 ounces allspice dram
Juice from 1/2 lime
.5 ounces super simple syrup 
2 dashes Angostura bitters

Combine in a shaker with ice, shake as if you're a dangerously good bartender, and strain into a chilled glass, preferably a coupe. Lime peel garnish optional.

The Peligroso is creative and complex. Combining rum with amari (bittersweet liqueurs) might seem odd, but it's not. After all, the classic Jungle Bird has rum and Campari, a part of drinks such as the Bitter Rasputin. Incorporating Averna, used in drinks such as the Pura Vida, gives the Peligroso a hint of richness. La Factoría's Peligroso uses spiced syrup with allspice berries and sugar. My easy workaround includes allspice dram, part of the Lion's Tail and my Les Bon Temps Roulé, and super simple syrup.

Do you want to bring some good danger into your life? Have a Peligroso.