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Repeal And The Scofflaw
On Prohibition Day and Repeal Day I thank my lucky stars that I can decide for myself if a cocktail is in order this evening, and that some faceless bunch of bluenoses no longer blockades a significant...
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Five Ways to Wreck a Martini
Here’s my list of five ways that bartenders have screwed up my martinis: Tasteless or idiosyncratic gins (or vodkas). It seems that the more expensive the gin, the less it tastes like juniper, and the...
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Trilby Cocktail (Vermouth)
The Trilby seems to be another cocktail with something of an identity crisis. I first learned of it from Paul Clark’s article on aperitifs. It wasn’t until I turned to the Savoy Cocktail Book to...
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Affinity Cocktail
Since I’m not much of a Scotch cocktail drinker, my recent addition of the Affinity to my short repertoire of Scotch whisky-based cocktails was sort of a surprise. In addition to giving me another...
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Absinthe and Brandy—The Bombay Cocktail
The Bombay Cocktail is an obscure bit of greatness from Harry Craddock’s 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book. If anise or absinthe is part of your palate, if the Sazerac or the Corpse Reviver are on your regular...
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What was your first cocktail?
Do you remember the first cocktail you made? I’m thinking about shaken or stirred creations, the ones that make us go that step beyond highballs or Rums-and-Coke. Mine was a martini. The “Vodka...
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What color is the Blue Moon Cocktail?
Quick! What color is the Blue Moon Cocktail? It’s blue, right? It’s called the Blue Moon. Yes and no. As it turns out, the original Blue Moon was… red. As first published in Hugo Ensslin’s 1916 Recipes...
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A return to Havana — the El Presidente Cocktail
Modern cocktail guides have done El Presidente a terrible disservice. They typically describe a sweet, fruity rum cocktail—a cloying, undrinkable embellishment of the original. They do not describe...
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The Satan’s Whiskers Cocktail
Satan’s Whiskers is a Bronx Cocktail with a suit and tie. I like the Bronx, but it’s quite spartan compared to the lush richness of Satan’s Whiskers. If I had to pick one or the other, the Satan’s...
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The Metropole Cocktail
I characterize the Metropole as a brandy-based cocktail, though the original formula suggested equal parts brandy and vermouth. Probably invented somewhere around 1890, the Metropole was the house...
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A Martini with something in it — the astonishing Atty Cocktail
The Atty Cocktail is a Martini with embellishments; if you get the proportions right, those embellishments are surprising, flavorful and entertaining. There is a predecessor to the Atty called the...
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Is the Manhattan too sweet for you? Try the Lafayette Cocktail
If you like Manhattans, but sometimes find them a bit sweet, perhaps the Lafayette Cocktail is your next best friend. The Lafayette is an embellishment of the “Perfect Manhattan” (sometimes called...
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The Dirty Martini
Shall I make you a Martini? Gin or vodka? Bitters? Lots of vermouth? No vermouth? Olive or twist? Up or rocks? Such a simple drink, so many options. And opinions. So where do you stand on “dirty?”...
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The Clover Club Cocktail
The Pendennis Club, the Jockey Club, the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, the Turf Club, the Pegu Club—any number of Old Boys Clubs have celebrated themselves with eponymous cocktails. For most, only the...
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The mystery of the Old Pal cocktail
Sometime back I wrote up one of my favorite whiskey drinks, the 1794 Cocktail. At the time, I thought of the 1794 as an improvement of the classic Boulevardier, but it might be just as accurate to...
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Feeling bitter in the Bronx — the Income Tax Cocktail
I still remember the first time I filled out a tax form. I felt very official and bureaucratic; I was an important part of the American economy. Of course, I didn’t make enough money that year to...
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Stiff Steadier: the Burnt Fuselage Cocktail
Charles Kerwood was an American fighter pilot with the Lafayette Flying Corps during WWI (until he crashed), and later flew supplies and arms for the French Foreign Legion in Morocco (until he...
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The Lucien Gaudin Cocktail
The Lucien Gaudin Cocktail is a tribute to the skill and success of one of France’s national fencing champions. He first made his name in the very early twentieth century, went on to become European...
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The Rise of Vermouth and the Pantomime Cocktail
Vermouth, orgeat, grenadine, and a luscious eggwhite foam, with just a dusting of nutmeg—Harry Craddock's Pantomime Cocktail.
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