Three to One Cocktail

Got some high proof gin? Make the Three to One Cocktail:

• 1.50 ounces 100-proof gin
• 0.75 ounce Marie Brizard Apry
• Juice of 1/2 lime

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wedge

I’m a firm believer in the concept of karma and of serendipity. So when my friends gave me spirits as birthday presents, I have not been surprised to see how easily they fit into my cocktail menu.

Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Cocktail

A rum drink with a long name, it’s the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Cocktail:

• 2.00 ounces Barbados Rum
• 0.75 ounce lime juice
• 2 dashes Cointreau
• 2 teaspoons Falernum

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass.

Just like gin and lemon are meant for each other, a similar thing can be said for rum and lime.

The big addition to the Royal Bermuda is Falernum. Falernum is a sweet syrup that has a slightly spicy flavor, but nothing like the Allspice Dram in drinks like the Lion’s Tail. It’s named after a British club established in 1844.

Milk Punch

Milk in a cocktail? It’s key in Milk Punch:

• 1.0 ounce brandy
• 0.5 ounce dark rum
• 2 teaspoons simple syrup
• 2 dashes vanilla extract
• 4.0 ounces whole milk

Shake the ingredients all together in a cocktail shaker with cracked ice. Strain into a tumbler half full of shaved ice (Shaved ice was more like snow than crushed ice, but if you pound your ice to smithereens, it’ll be similar enough). Grate or shake some nutmeg on top.

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The Bebbo Cocktail

Named funny and made with honey, it’s The Bebbo Cocktail:

• 1.5 ounces gin
• 1.0 ounce fresh lemon juice
• 0.5 ounce honey
• 2.0 teaspoons orange juice

Stir all the ingredients (except ice) together in a cocktail shaker until the honey dissolves. Add ice, shake, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a cocktail cherry.

This drink is supposedly similar to the Bee’s Knees cocktail, but instead of the Bebbo they should have called it the Cat’s Pajamas – it’s that good.

The Blue Moon

Having scored some real Creme de Violette, I made The Blue Moon:

• 2.0 ounces gin
• 0.5 ounce Crème Yvette or crème de violette
• 0.5 ounce lemon juice

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

I managed to find some Crème Yvette earlier in this experiment, and I used it in the Aviation. While the taste was fine, I didn’t care for the color. It’s “purple” as in “has a lot of red in it”, versus violet. So when my friend Justin managed to find a source for crème de violette, I was in.

Barbara West Cocktail

Want a sherry-based martini? Try the Barbara West Cocktail:

• 2.0 ounces gin
• 1.0 ounce sherry
• 0.5 ounce lemon juice
• 1 small dash Angostura bitters

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker, and strain into a cocktail glass.

I have no idea why this drink is named what it is. There was a famous Titanic survivor named Barbara West as well as a TV news anchor, but I think the latter Babs would be too young to have inspired a vintage cocktail.

The Alamagoozlum Cocktail

The first cocktail recipe in the book is the Alamagoozlum Cocktail:

• 0.5 egg white
• 2.0 ounces genever gin
• 2.0 ounces water
• 1.5 ounces Jamaican rum
• 1.5 ounces yellow or green Chartreuse
• 1.5 ounces gomme syrup
• 0.5 ounce orange curaçao
• 0.5 ounce Angostura bitters

Shake very, very hard and long in a large iced cocktail shaker and serve tremulously into several previously chilled cocktail glasses.

This is an odd one, and I find it ironic that this cocktail managed to come first in the book, as it perfectly illustrates what a vintage and forgotten cocktail should be. It contains a number of obscure ingredients, which took me some time to assemble. Then I had to wait until I had two other friends around who wanted to try it, ’cause the recipe makes enough for three glasses.