INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) —  Cinco de Mayo may be over, but the party continued in the “Life.Style.Live!” kitchen as bartender and cocktail entrepreneur Brett Butler mixed a pair of globe-trotting drinks for Colton and Stacy.

The first featured drink is the Mole Manhattan, a Mexican sweet & sour take on the classic cocktail.

“Traditional Manhattan, for those that don’t know: whiskey-based, sweet vermouth, bitters. Very simple, three ingredients,” Butler said. “This is a riff on that.”

Butler began with the base spirit, pouring Hard Truth’s Sweet Mash High Road Rye from Hard Truth Hills in Columbus.

He says a strong base spirit is the backbone of a good cocktail.

“It just gives a lot of structure. It gives a lot of depth,” Butler said. “Cocktails are all about balance, right? So that’s going to provide structure.”

For anyone who prefers not to taste the alcohol at all, Butler says whiskey may not be the first choice. Vodka is a neutral spirit that “goes with anything” and tends to be the favorite of people who want a lighter flavor in the glass.

Mole Manhattan

 2 oz.    Hard Truth Hills Sweet Mash Rye 

.75 oz.    Cocchi di Torino Sweet Vermouth  

.25 oz.    Cynar 

    Bsp.    Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur 

1 dropper  Bittermen’s Mole Bitters 

Add all the ingredients to a mixing glass with a large ice cube and stir for twenty seconds until well chilled.  Strain into a martini or coupe glass and garnish with a mole-soaked Luxardo cherry. 

The second cocktail, called the Ube Colada, is a riff on the tropical rum classic, celebrating Filipino flavors and culture. Ube — pronounced “OO-bay” — is a purple yam widely used in Filipino cuisine, desserts, and drinks. Its vivid violet color and subtly sweet, vanilla-like flavor have made it a staple of Filipino food culture.

For Butler, it was a natural anchor for a Philippines-inspired drink that also leans into the tropical, coconut-forward profile of a classic piña colada.

Butler started with Jamaican rum, and he took a moment to explain why the spirit is unlike most others on the shelf.

“Jamaican rum is known for funk,” he said. “It’s got something to do with esters and the fermentation process. It lasts longer, and that’s actually a good thing.”

Next up, Butler added Hard Truth Hills Toasted Coconut Rum and Hard Truth Hills Toasted Coconut Rum Cream. “You don’t need a lot of this, because you’ve already got that Jamaican rum,” he said of the coconut rum cream.

One of the more distinctive components of the Ube Colada is Cota Pandan liqueur — a product most American drinkers have never encountered. Pandan is a plant native to Southeast Asia, recognizable by its long, vibrant green leaves and its fragrant aroma. Butler described the flavor as a cross between vanilla and toasted coconut.

He finished by adding pineapple juice, lime juice, orgeat, and a splash of vibrant Ube cold foam.

Ube Colada

   1 oz.    Jamaican Rum 

  .5 oz.    Hard Truth Hills Toasted Coconut Rum 

  .5 oz.    Hard Truth Hills Toasted Coconut Rum Cream 

.75 oz.    Pandan Liqueur 

   2 oz.    Pineapple Juice 

  .5 oz.    Lime Juice 

    Bsp.    Orgeat 

    Top     Ube Cold Foam 

Add all the ingredients but the Ube cold foam to a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously until well chilled and frothy.  Strain over ice into a large rocks or Collins glass.  Top with Ube cold foam.  Garnish with Pandan or pineapple leaves and fresh bruleed pineapple.