Happy Hour Drink Recipe: The Oriental

This life-saving cocktail will make you all kinds of happy, with a jolt of rye (which, thankfully, is much more available today than even two years ago) shaken up with sweet vermouth, orange curaçao, and a touch of fresh lime to bring it all home. It’s an older drink now forgotten by most, but I’ll bet it can make even the worst weeks seem a bit better (and it's fun to introduce such a pleasant combo to friends, too).

Ingredients:
Ice cubes
1-1/2 ounce rye
3/4 ounces sweet vermouth
3/4 ounce orange curaçao
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions:
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add everything. Shake well.

2. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass.

--A.J. Rathbun