A seafoam green-hued Grasshopper, laden with cream, isn't the most common of cocktail requests. This retro crème de menthe and crème de cacao concoction -- which, legend has it, was spawned in pre-Prohibition New Orleans before becoming a popular tipple during the '50s and '60s -- is, as Eben Freeman, director of bar operations and innovation for chef Michael White's Altamarea Group describes, "a paradigm of mid-century drinking habits." Made incorrectly, he warns, the results are thick and cloying.
At The Butterfly -- Chef White's upbeat Tribeca homage to a Wisconsin supper club -- Freeman's well-edited list of playful, classic concoctions includes a revamped take on the Grasshopper that's a crystalline beauty poured over crushed ice. The drink is bright and minty with elegant chocolate undertones -- a far cry from its debased, milkshake-like past. Here he shuns "flavorings, colorings and high-fructose corn sweetener," instead using Tempus Fugit's authentic crème de menthe and crème de cacao, which use real mint and cacao.
"By using an age-old trick of milk clarification, I was able to remove the heavy cream but retain the lactic quality of the original," he explains. "And by adding some dark, aged rum for backbone and a bit of Branca Menta for mystery, I think we were able to make a Grasshopper that is light enough to drink two of without sacrificing the attributes which made it such a hit a generation ago."
