October Cocktail: Sidecar Solution

72 of you solved the October Cocktail puzzle, Sidecar, with 59 solving the original puzzle without any help. Congratulations to all! Below is the solved grid and an explanation of the final answer. A full solution, including cryptic solutions to every clue, is available for download on my Patreon page. If you haven't joined, sign up at https://www.patreon.com/negronis_cocktails, which will also give you access to future puzzles. The next Cocktail will launch on Saturday, December 14, at 4pm Eastern.

Cheers!

Negroni

One across entry in each row (blue in the grid above) needs to have a letter removed to the sidecar on the right before entry. The sidecar letters spell NE DIAGONAL. In the puzzle grid, the letters in the diagonal going Northeast, from bottom left top top right (shown in red), spell your answer, THIRD WHEEL, a name for a person not needed in a situation, especially one with two people in a romantic relationship, and also, something provided by a motorcycle sidecar, for which the cocktail is very likely named.

About Me

My name is Martin Reinfried, and in some circles, I am known as Negroni. I have been writing puzzles for a long time, both for work and for fun, and I have always been enamored of cryptic crosswords, especially variety cryptics. I have written several variety cryptics, some for fun, some appearing in the MIT Mystery Hunt, and some published in the National Puzzlers League's Enigma magazine. Most of the variety cryptics I have written can be accessed at negroni.fun/puzzles. I am a software engineer, and I have been a co-founder of a couple of companies, including Shinteki, where I wrote a mobile app to run puzzle-based events. I live in Telluride, CO with my wife Dennise and son Max, and I look forward to providing you with a steady stream of variety cryptic puzzles.