The Bakunin is a specialty of Pravda in New York, a Russian restaurant with more than a hundred vodkas behind their bar. We think it first appeared in print in Dale DeGroff’s The Craft of the Cocktail.
It’s a wonderful little orange number, with orange vodka in a starring role. Pravda uses Stolichnaya Oranj, and calls for Grand Marnier for the orange curaçao. You can use any orange vodka and orange curaçao you have on hand – but avoid triple sec, which won’t bring the jammy, deep flavors you’d get from a curaçao.
You can use bottled orange juice for this, if it’s all you have – but it’s absolutely phenomenal with fresh-squeezed oranges in season. You could even swap in some tangerine or mandarin juice for a change of pace.
The grenadine (or pomegranate molasses, if you prefer) is just for color – use a light hand.
