"This cocktail came from trying to meet a deadline and my friend and 'work dad' Scott Key (a manager at Death & Co Denver) helping me into the wee hours of the morning with the drink development. My assignment was to make a simple, spirituous after-dinner drink. Scott grabbed two favorite after-dinner nips (Bénédictine and Grand Marnier), I love the former with brandy as a nightcap, as does my biological father. Apple brandy—both the robust juiciness of Laird’s and the floral, more nuanced Calvados—bridged the two liqueurs together perfectly, with mole bitters coming in with some complex spice notes. It was 7am and our morning kitchen staff was arriving by the time we finished, but we had a blast and my drink was green-lit on the first try, which made us both proud—and extremely hungover." —EF