It’s been too long since we pulled a drink from Ted Haigh’s inimitable Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails, one of the best introductions to classic cocktails for the aspiring mixologist. I’ve made most of the drinks in it already, but that was before I was blogging, so the blog is a good chance to revisit the…
These two cocktails (the Rob Roy quite well-known, the Rory O’More less so) are basically variants of the Manhattan, using, respectively, Scotch and Irish whiskies, albeit variations using the no-longer-in-favor 1:1 ratio of whiskey to vermouth. The Rob Roy, presumably, is the older of the drinks, while the Rory O’More’s name was probably chosen to…
There can be only…okay, no. I’m not gonna do it. That’s a terrible movie anyway, 80s kitsch aside. This is the fifth and final take on the Old-Fashioned that I’m going to feature from Robert O. Simonson’s wonderful new book, The Old-Fashioned. If you want anymore, you’ll just have to buy the book. Which you should…
Ok, maybe Scotch cocktails aren’t all that rare, because here’s another one from the Savoy Cocktail Book. This is essentially a minor variation on the Rob Roy, which is really a minor variation on the Manhattan. This is also, apart from the vermouth, akin to an old-fashioned, i.e. whiskey with bitters and sugar. And hey, it’s…
The Trilby cocktail, which possibly takes its name from the same source as the fedora-like hat, George du Maurier’s 1894 novel of the same name (by way of a London stage adaptation)…man, this sentence has become too complex. Anyway. There are a lot of recipes for this thing, going back to about 1900 (further evidence…
Whether Cameron was one of Harry Craddock’s fellow London bartenders, or a regular customer, or just some dude who came in one day and requested this rather odd drink, we will probably never know. While cocktails based on either Scotch or Irish whiskeys are relatively rare, a cocktail containing both together is almost unheard of.…
Another Scotch-based drink, the Thistle is very, very similar to the Bobby Burns Cocktail – which wasn’t very good, if you’ll remember. In fact, the only difference is that the Thistle has a touch of bitters, whereas the Bobby Burns had a touch of Benedictine. So, this one won’t be very good either, right? The…
Another from our now random journey through the Savoy Cocktail Book, this one illustrates very well the problems inherent in Scotch-based cocktails. Despite the occasional gem, Scotch drinks don’t often shine, and you’re more than likely to wind up with something less than enjoyable. The Recipe: 1 dash absinthe 1 dash orange bitters 2 dashes lemon…
Yet another entry from our gradual mostly-alphabetic sojourn through the Savoy Cocktail Book, this is another of the relatively rare Scotch cocktails. Described by Harry Craddock, the Savoy‘s author, as “one of the very best Whisky cocktails,” it’s a simple drink to put together. The Recipe: 1/2 Scotch 1/2 sweet (red) vermouth 3 dashes Benedictine Shake with…
There aren’t very many Scotch-based cocktails out there, and maybe for good reason. Scotch is a complex beast and it doesn’t always play well with others. In any case, a good single-malt scotch is best enjoyed on its own terms. But as this drink proves, even Scotch can be the basis for an excellent mixed…
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