Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails

Drinks From the Past for the Future

Peace Train

It took me longer than expected to make this cocktail. I was introduced to the idea of the cocktail while watching the Peacemaker television series by James Gunn.

I really wasn’t expecting much from it, as the Peacemaker character in the Suicide Squad was a singularly unpleasant guy, but I like the shows Gunn makes and I figured I might enjoy this one. I really did, and I gained a new found respect for John Cena, who is much more talented that I used to give him credit.

Continue reading

Balalaika

2020-03-19 Stars - 3 Vodka Tarus

I’m reading the wonderful Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami and I came across this cocktail description:

A Balalaika is made with one part each of vodka, Cointreau, and lemon juice. A simple concoction, but unless it’s as bitingly freezing as the North Pole, it doesn’t taste good. If somebody who doesn’t have the right touch mixes it, it ends up tasting diluted, watery. This Balalaika was amazingly delicious, with an almost perfect bite to it.

Continue reading

Flamenco

2017-05-03 Gin Sherry Stars - 3 Tarus

Another classic from Death & Co., the Flamenco:

cocktail

  • 1.50 ounces Lustau Amontillado Sherry
  • 1.00 ounce Bols Genever gin
  • 0.50 ounce orange juice
  • 0.50 ounce lemon juice
  • 0.75 ounce orgeat
  • 2 dashes Angostura bitters

Shake all the ingredients with ice, then strain into a coupe. No garnish.

My biggest challenge in making drinks from the Death & Co. book is finding the ingredients. I was looking for a cocktail to make and was happy to see that I had everything to make this one.

Continue reading

Chaos Calmer

From the world of tech comes the Chaos Calmer:

cocktail

  • 1.50 ounces gin
  • 0.75 ounce lime juice
  • 0.25 ounce triple sec
  • 1.50 ounce orange juice
  • 1 tsp Grenadine syrup

Short shake with broken ice and pure unstrained into a double rocks glass. Garnish with an orange wheel or lime wedge.

In my other life I work with open source software, and I tend to use open source solutions for almost all of my technology needs. I recently needed to replace my wireless router and I decided to choose one that was supported by the OpenWRT project.

Continue reading

White Lady

Gin and lemon meet again in the White Lady:

cocktail

  • 1.50 ounces gin
  • 0.75 ounce Cointreau
  • 0.75 ounce fresh lemon juice

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

I was first introduced to the White Lady through my friend Justin. When he was the cocktail chef at the Oakleaf, he would host “Throwback Thursdays” which would feature vintage cocktails. Each menu would have a theme, and I loved this one:

Continue reading

Pink Gin

2016-02-22 Gin Stars - 3 Tarus

“What is a cocktail?” A question raised by Pink Gin:

cocktail

Shake in an iced cocktail shaker. Strain into a stemmed cocktail glass, sans garnish.

According to Wikipedia, the first use of the word “cocktail” to refer to a beverage was in 1806:

“Cock-tail is a stimulating liquor, composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters”

So, what happens when you forget the sugar and water? What makes a cocktail a cocktail and not just swilling booze from a bottle? Can I put a small cube of ice in a glass of Powers and call it a cocktail? There is an entire class of two ingredient cocktails called the “highball” but the second ingredient is usually a fizzy soda product that is more than just water. I was not looking forward to making this drink.

Continue reading

The Twentieth Century Cocktail

Named after a train, it’s the Twentieth Century Cocktail:

cocktail

  • 1.50 ounces gin
  • 0.75 ounce Lillet Blanc
  • 0.50 ounce light créme de cacao (or a scant splash, to taste)
  • 0.75 ounce fresh lemon juice

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

This cocktail appeared in the 1930s, so it is post-Prohibition, and the train it was named after has been called the Most Famous Train in the World.

Continue reading
Older posts