208. Leowi Cocktail (Loewi Cocktail)

 My interpretation:
  0.5 oz Hayman’s Old Tom infused with orange peels
  1 oz Captive Spirits Big Gin
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Extra Dry

Fill mixing-glass with ice, stir, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This pre-dinner cocktail recipe first appears in JM 1908 under the name Loewi (a surname, like Otto Loewi). In that recipe, Booth’s Orange Gin is specified by name. The 2nd Edition changes the spelling to Leowi. The 3rd Edition’s pertinent page is missing. Straub 1913 has Loewi, pointing to Straub’s better knowledge or confinement to JM 1908. At any rate, the change in spelling persists to 1933, though the spelling Loewi seems correct. While no orange gins are readily available in our market, orange gin is not difficult to produce. The easiest method is to place several orange peels in a container of gin for about 4 weeks, agitating occasionally, and strain off into a clean, sealable container. This special ingredient adds a fragrant orange flavor to this Dry Martini riff (with a 3:1 ratio) without weakening or sweetening it too much.

190. Jack Zeller Cocktail

 My interpretation:
  1 oz Dubonnet Rouge
  1 oz prepared gin (Captive Spirits Big Gin infused with orange peels & syrup, strained)

Stir with ice, strain, serve. — This original recipe of JM 1908 (where “Booth’s Orange Gin” is specified) depends on a unique ingredient to balance the lightly bitter/astringent qualities of the aperitif component. While orange gin has only recently begun to reappear on the market, certain substitutions were available in the recent past, such as Seagram’s Twisted Orange (now out of production). However, the mixologist may easily obtain a good result by infusing his own gin (preferably an American or botanical style) with carefully sliced orange peels and sugar syrup to taste. If orange gin is not feasible or to taste, one may follow the Straub 1913 recipe, which calls simply for “Booth’s Old Tom Gin.”