Paper Fleet (Paper Planes for a Crowd)

Developed by prodigious NYC bartender Sam Ross in the early aughts as a riff on the Last Word, the Paper Plane is bright and warm, with bourbon, Aperol, and lemon juice playing against the herbal, bitter notes of Amaro Nonino. It’s a delightful drink for the Thanksgiving table, but not one you’d like to labor over, shake by shake, for individual servings.

The solution is batching, creating so many Paper Planes at once (and ahead of time) that we’ve taken to calling it the Paper Fleet. The process is quite simple: All liquors are mixed together and stored in the freezer for up to a week. Just before go-time, citrus juice (in our case, lemon) and water are mixed in as well. Kept in a pitcher in the freezer, it is now ready to be deployed at a moment's notice, filling and refilling glasses all around the room.

Confused about the addition of water to this otherwise robust crimson-hued cocktail? When making a big batch of a drink that would normally be shaken or stirred with ice, the recipe must include water to account for dilution—i.e., the water released by the ice into each individual drink. This has a huge impact on the final balance of flavors and alcoholic intensity, as melted ice can account for 15%–25% of a drink’s total volume. Here, that means adding 1 cup water to ensure each drink is at peak enjoyability. And don’t forget: No cocktail is complete without a garnish. Set some lemon twists out by the pitcher and glassware and let people adorn as they wish.