With his first bar, The Last Word, Rick Dobbs took cocktail culture out of the big city and into communities like Livermore, California. With three more bars in the works, Dobbs is part of a growing cocktail diaspora, bringing quality drinks (like this Last Word variation) to neighborhoods across the country while leaving high-concept preciousness behind. “The crap cocktail is dead—the craft cocktail is now part of the subculture,” Dobbs says. “You’re seeing a return to the fun of drinking—there’s certainly room for high-concept places that are using imported yak bitters or whatever, but we have to be approachable in that way.”
¾ oz. mezcal (Dobbs uses Mezcal Vida)
¾ oz. fresh lime juice
¾ oz. maraschino liqueur
¾ oz. green Chartreuse
Tools: shaker, strainer
Glass: cocktail
Garnish: cherry
Shake all the ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish.
Rick Dobbs, The Last Word, Livermore, California
