Primrose Cocktail

The old French-manufactured Kina Lillet was an interesting element in the cocktail mixing world. Some books such as The Savoy Cocktail Book or Boothby’s World Drinks used it with abandon while others, including… Continue reading →

Blue Moon Cocktail

The earliest recipe for the Blue Moon I can find is in Hugo Ensslin’s Recipes for Mixed Drinks from 1917. It started life as a martini cocktail with the addition of Creme Yvette, a… Continue reading →

Champs Élysées Cocktail

The Champs Élysées: expensive boutiques, cafes, tree-lined, with the Arc de Triomphe at one end, it never fails to impress. I am more of a Montparnasse / Montmartre kind of guy, but there… Continue reading →

Eskie Cocktail

As the mercury drops and the nights become longer, my mind turns from coolers and fizzes to the warm, inviting scent of a good whiskey. The Manhattan cocktail is like a warm blanket… Continue reading →

In Defense of Lillet Blanc

Lillet Blanc has been taking a beating in the cocktail press for a long time, now, and I think it is time to reconsider Lillet’s position. It can’t help being what it is… Continue reading →

Just What the Doctor Ordered: Prescription Mint Julep

“For to say truth, he has been shrewdly heated, the gentleman no doubt will fall to his juleps.” The julep (or “Jewlip,” or “Julipp” or “Julap,” or any number of other spellings) has… Continue reading →

The Tailspin Cocktail

Having already written about the Burnt fuselage cocktail (see) and the Aviation Cocktail, it only makes sense to include the Tailspin as well. Aviation-inspired named drinks became popular in the teens and twenties… Continue reading →

Bitter is Better: Aperitifs and Aperitivos

Sitting down to supper one evening in a modest cafe, I happened to notice over my companion’s shoulder a young couple in their early twenties at a nearby table enjoying an Irish coffee,… Continue reading →

Young Man Cocktail

“I have been told that a young would-be composer wrote to Mozart asking advice about how to compose a symphony. Mozart responded that a symphony was a complex and demanding form and it… Continue reading →

Metropole Cocktail

Bat Masterson, the wild west gunfighter who eventually settled in New York, was a frequent visitor to the Metopole Hotel with other raconteurs of the theatrical and sporting crowds. Pugilists, show girls, cardsharps, confidence tricksters, and… Continue reading →