If the newly opened Hopscotch in Fullerton were a dive, you'd have found me Friday night at the bar with a shot and a chaser. Whiskey and beer? Yes, please.
Hopscotch is not a dive, though, but a re-purposed historic train depot that used to be an overpriced Italian restaurant. This being Orange County, there was a list of craft cocktails hiding between the four pages of whiskey and the long list of craft beer, to which we gravitated before ordering shots.
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The cocktail list seemed to make heavy use of Luxardo maraschino liqueur, which goes well with whiskey but is very, very sweet. The 21st Century, made with Bulleit bourbon, Luxardo, Combier triple sec, and orange bitters, seemed the least sweet.
The drink in the glass itself was nicely balanced, like an Old Fashioned skewed sweet and alcoholic; the orange bitters helped cut through the two liqueurs and the sweet whiskey. I found myself brushing the lemon sugar rim off to reduce the sweetness and to stave off the snickering from the next table over; once I did, the cocktail disappeared in short order.
Again. Whiskey and beer. WHISKEY AND BEER. How can you go wrong?Follow Stick a Fork In It on Twitter @ocweeklyfood or on Facebook! And don't forget to download our free Best Of App here!
