Today, at a gathering of the bright lights of my workplace division, I served up

Creole Contentment*

1 pony cognac
1 pony of madeira
1/2 pony maraschino (The original recipe calls for a pony but the author of the book recommends half that amount and increasing the cognac, which worked well for me as I has plenty of cognac and was cleanng out the maraschino bottle.)
dash of orange bitters ( lacking orange bitters and figuring that it was supposed to be a New Orleans cocktail after all I used Peychaud's.)

Stir or shake with ice. Serve up in a manhattan glass garnished with maraschino cherries.

I can attest that, while not Creole, I am very contented indeed.

* From The Gentleman's Companion (Vol II): Being an Exotic Drinking Book. I'm no gentleman, but the book is a hoot and a half.