326. Sloe Gin Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1.5 oz Plymouth Sloe Gin
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat & Co. Rouge

Fill mixing-glass with ice, stir, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This simple Duo that leans on the sloe gin and seemingly attempts to balance this with a smaller dose of sweet vermouth, first appears in JM1908. It is a simple aperitif for those who like sloe gin. Two other Sloe Gin Cocktails of note are Craddock’s and Crockett’s in the Savoy Cocktail Book and the Old Waldorf Bar Days respectively. The former turns Jack’s recipe into a Perfect by addition of dry vermouth, the latter reformulates it as 2:1 Sloe Gin and Plymouth Gin with orange bitters. This resembles Craddock’s Sloeberry cocktail, which adds Angostura and orange bitters to a glass of Sloe Gin.
 

320. Sherman Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1.25 oz William Wolf Rye
  0.75 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  1 dash St. George absinthe

Fill mixing-glass half-full with broken ice, shake, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This Manhattan riff with absinthe instead of bitters, perhaps named after the Civil War general, appears first in Straub; from thence it is taken into JM1916.

315. Saratoga Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Copper & Kings Brandy
  0.75 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  0.25 oz Rittenhouse BiB
  2 barspoons pineapple syrup
  2 dashes Angostura bitters

Fill mixing-glass with cracked ice, stir, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This pineapple-tinged Brandy-Vermouth cocktail—no relation to the Saratoga Cooler as found in Harry Johnson—with an added slug of Rye, betrays the great care and consideration that went into its alteration, and the effect is admirable. This late-19th century favorite appears, e.g., in the Hoffman House Bartender’s Guide (1905) with maraschino, strawberries, and champagne, but Jack Grohusko includes his own pared-down, more historic version from the outset in 1908 and continues unchanged. The drink by this name in Straub is 2 oz of brandy with pineapple syrup, maraschino, and orange bitters—this is the modern version; but Grohusko does not apparently feel the need to conform to new ideas, with the exception of pineapple syrup (much as serious coffee-houses usually, reluctantly, offer some sort of analog to a Starbucks “caramel macchiato”). Dominique Migliore’s 1925 L’Art du Shaker is more similar to Grohusko but forgoing the novel pineapple: brandy and sweet vermouth with Angostura, curaçao, and absinthe. McElhone, in Barflies & Cocktails (1927) restores to Straub’s version of the newer recipe the missing two strawberries and a top-up of champagne as the turn-of-the-century Hoffman House version. The pineapple in the Savoy Cocktail Book (1930) is a slice rather than syrup, and the champagne top-up is downgraded to seltzer.

 

314. Salome Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Beefeater London Dry Gin
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Dry
  2 dashes Fee Brothers Orange Bitters
  3 celery leaves

Shake vigorously with fine ice until shaker is covered with ice (about 30-40 seconds), strain into cocktail glass, garnish with celery leaf, serve. — This recipe, a Perfect Martini with an exotic, savory celery tinge, comes to JM1916 from Straub. In the Old Waldorf Bar Days (1931) which represents the root of the same tradition, a drink by the same name follows the St. Peter, but is a completely different drink consisting of Sweet Vermouth, Dubonnet, and absinthe; The Savoy (1930) had a probably related mixture of Sweet Vermouth, Dry Gin, and Dubonnet. The root of any drink in those days bearing this name is surely the book by Oscar Wilde, and perhaps more so, the infamous opera by Richard Strauss, written in 1905 with a US premiere in 1907.

302. Rob Roy Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz The Famous Grouse
  1 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  3 dashes Peychaud’s bitters

Stir with 1/2 glass full of cracked ice, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This famous Scotch-Manhattan, supposedly named for the opera rather than the folk hero, originally appeared in JM 1908–1910 as a sherry-based cocktail with sweet (Ballor) vermouth and a dash of orange curaçao. Only in 1912, the third edition, is the present, presumably more correct, recipe introduced (with Peychaud’s being spelled “Peychard’s”—indistinguishable in an old New York accent). The version incorporated by Straub called for 1 dash each of Angostura and Orange bitters instead. This is similar to the Robber Cocktail of Barflies and Cocktails (1927) which forgoes Orange Bitters. The Savoy (1930) also calls only for Angostura, and notes interestingly: “Particularly for St. Andrew’s Day, to open the evening for the usual enormous annual gathering of the clans at the Savoy.” The Old Waldorf Bar Days only specifies Orange Bitters, no Angostura. It is well to note that the Waldorf, as the originator, may be expected to present the recipe most faithful to the original. Also note, no cherry garnish is specified in any of these recipes.

300. Robert Burns Cocktail

My intepretation:
  1.5 oz The Famous Grouse blended Scotch whisky
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  1 dash St. George Absinthe Verte

Fill mixing-glass with broken ice, shake well (about 30 seconds), strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This classic Scotch cocktail goes heavy on the base, surprisingly similar to the modern version. In 1908, Jack was a little confused on the Scotch trio of recipes which appear in close proximity here. The first, the Robert Burns, was to be made with equal portions of Scotch whisky and French (Chappaz) vermouth, with 3 dashes of absinthe. This was only amended in JM1916, after Straub’s Manual appeared and according to that recipe, which also rightly introduced the option of Scotch (Robert Burns was himself Scotch, so it makes sense). The Irish option remained, perhaps due to the popular taste for that whisky among those of Irish descent living New York at the time. The drink ought to be stirred, as specified in the earlier, pre-Straub editions of Jack’s Manual.

296. Red Lion Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key Dry Gin
  0.75 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  0.25 oz home-infused orange gin

Stir with mixing-glass half-full of cracked ice, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This Dry Martini riff with a stiff orange twist appears in JM 1908 calling for high and dry gin, Ballor Vermouth, and Booth’s Orange Gin. The latter, by the symbol on its label, inspired the name for this drink, though, aside from the Booth’s Orange Gin, this mixture differs considerably from that sweet-sour one ascribed to A. A. Tarling.

294. Raymond Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key Dry Gin
  .75 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  .75 oz Noilly Prat Extra Dry
  2 dashes Chartreuse
  lemon twist

Fill mixing-glass with ice, stir, strain into champagne coupe or flute, garnish with lemon, serve. — This Perfect Martini riff with an herbal undertone first appears in JM 1910 and continues unchanged. It does not appear to have any counterparts in other manuals. The Raymond Hitch Cocktail in the Savoy (1930) does not seem to be related.
 

291. Queen's Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Plymouth Gin
  0.5 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  1 piece pineapple (in mixing-glass)
  1 T orange juice

Fill mixing-glass with cracked ice, shake, strain into cocktail glass, serve with fresh pineapple garnish. — This recipe appears at first glance to be a riff on the Bronx in order to give the borough of Queens its own drink; and thus, the spelling should probably omit the apostrophe. Indeed, by comparison with some popular Bronx recipes, its only peculiar contribution is the addition of pineapple to the shaker. Long before its first appearance in 1916, there was a Queen’s Highball with Amer Picon and Grenadine (see JM 1908). This drink, clearly unrelated, appears eight years later without any precedent in Straub. Its analogs otherwise include the identically named “Queen’s” in Barflies & Cocktails (1927) and in the Savoy (1930), which specifies crushed pineapple, and the “Queen” in the Old Waldorf Bar Days (1931).
 

286. Prince Henry Cocktail

My interpretation:
  0.75 oz Aria American Dry Gin
  0.75 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  0.5 oz Hiram Walker Crème de Menthe (white)
  1 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters

 Frappé (shake vigorously with fine ice), strain into chilled cocktail glass, serve. — This cooling, minty Martini-riff appears first in laconic Straub, from which it is borrowed for JM 1916 without filling in the directions. Frappé drinks in this time are almost always strained. In the Old Waldorf Bar Book (1931), the Prince Henry is a Martini with a dash of crème de menthe on top, while the Prince is whisky with crème de menthe and orange bitters. This is further support for a Martini-style strained drink, rather than one served on fine ice (which frappé usually signifies today). The Old Waldorf Bar would be more trustworthy in this case than Straub, since it is based on the original recipe book to which Straub may or may not have had access. The 1935 revision by Crockett attributes the Martini-style drink to the commemoration of a visit by Prince Henry (Heinrich) of Prussia in 1902.
 

283. Porter Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth
  0.75 oz Aria American Dry Gin
  0.25 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  1 sprig fresh mint

Muddle mint in mixing-glass, add ice, stir, strain into cocktail glass, garnish with fresh mint, serve. — This lighter, minty vermouth-forward cocktail, originates with JM 1908 and continues unchanged until the last edition. Curiously, Straub includes his own Porter cocktail, which he equates with Pat’s, and the recipe resembles that of Pat’s Cocktail found in Jack’s Manual, only with addition of a mint sprig.

 
   

275. Picon Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 2/3 oz Amaro Ciociaro
  1/3 oz Noilly Prat Rouge

Fill mixing-glass halfway with ice; shake, strain into cocktail glass, garnish with fresh orange peel, serve. — Originally made in 1908 with Amer Picon (old formula) and favored Ballor Vermouth, this satisfying citrus digestif was eventually included in Straub 1913 in roughly the same form (3:1 ratio). In 1916 JM is selling M&R Vermouth instead of Ballor but the ostensibly successful recipe remains the same. The Savoy Cocktail Book (1930), usually leaning stronger than Jack, curiously calls for equal parts and no orange twist. Amaro Ciociaro can stand on its own, but Bigallet China-China Amer could do so as well. Indeed, this is a fine method of serving many amari of the same class (not forgetting to change the name accordingly).
 

267. Parson's Cocktail

My interpretation:
  2 oz Uncle Val’s Botanical Gin
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Rouge
  1 piece orange peel

Fill mixing-glass with fine ice, frappé, strain into whisky glass, garnish with fresh orange peel, serve. — The original 1908 recipe in Jack’s Manual calls for Gordon dry gin, editions 2–4 for “high and dry” gin. Properly, this drink should have a higher proof dry gin, such as Castle & Key or Beefeater. However, the botanical gin works quite well in the circumstances, though it may not please the titular Parson. It is meant to be a bracing drink with an orange undertone, served very cold and somewhat diluted in a comfortable glass. Straub 1913/1914 has a “Parson” (non-possessive) under which the reader is referred to the Rossington, a similar drink, described as 2:1 Old Tom Gin and Sweet Vermouth stirred with an orange peel.