Crème de cacao is typically found in sweet, creamy dessert drinks: your Grasshoppers, Mudslides, etc. But we’re most fond of it when it’s used in small measures in unexpected places to add a mysterious, can’t-quite-place-it depth.
The Sun Stealer, a Hanky Panky riff by Henry Prendergrast at Chicago’s Analogue, is one such example. Against a solid base of gin and sweet vermouth, crème de cacao and an equal measure of Fernet Branca work together to create an intense, fragrant take on an after-dinner mint.