This drink is one of many gems from Philadelphia’s Franklin Mortgage & Investment Co (a bar, not a bank). It’s rare that a “perfect” drink (equal parts of every ingredient) makes for a better result than a more carefully-designed ratio would, but the Sideways in Reverse is the exception to the rule.
If you’re the type of bitter-avoidant person who would typically use Aperol instead of Campari in a drink that calls for a bitter citrus apéritif, we feel you – but in this case we really do recommend Campari, as the original recipe specifies.
The recipe also calls for Laird’s 100-proof Bottled-In-Bond Straight Apple Brandy. That particular blend can be difficult to find outside of the northeast US, so feel free to use any apple brandy you like, so long as it has a strong apple flavor.