266. Parisian Cocktail

 

My interpretation:
 2 oz Dubonnet Rouge
 1 T lime juice

Stir with ice, strain into cocktail glass, and serve. — This recipe, occurring in two variants, is to be distinguished from that of the same name in Barflies & Cocktails (1927) and The Savoy Cocktail Book (1930), which call for equal parts gin, dry vermouth, and cassis (blackcurrant liqueur). Regarding our present recipe, the information in JM 1933 is somewhat scant by comparison with the earlier instances, which include seltzer. The change is to be traced to Straub 1913/1914, which omits the seltzer and ice. Byrrh is retained until 1916, when it is replaced with Dubonnet. I therefore add the version of JM 1908, probably imagined as a sort of lowball, in view of the ice:

My interpretation:
 2 oz Byrrh
 1 T lime juice

Build in highball glass (to accommodate seltzer), stir, add two pieces of ice, stir, top off with seltzer, serve. Below I present first the 1933 recipe served “up” and then two interpretations of the earlier recipe with seltzer.

Jack’s Manual 1916, 1933

Jack’s Manual 1908, 1910, 1912

Jack’s Manual 1908, 1910, 1912

233. Merry Widow Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Beefeater London Dry Gin
  1 oz Dubonnet Rouge Grand Apéritif

Fill mixing-glass with ice, stir, strain into cocktail glass, twist orange peel over glass, garnish, serve. — The fancifully named drink alludes to a play and an operetta. JM1908 calls for Byrrh wine instead of Dubonnet. This is typical of that period, as several of the drinks of this kind (excepting those with Dubonnet or St Raphael in the name) used Byrrh instead of Dubonnet as a rule. Straub 1913 has a variant of this Merry Widow (there are several recipes by the name) gives the option of Sweet Vermouth or Byrrh, but the similarity ends there. It also includes maraschino and Dry Vermouth (but no gin) and is to be shaken rather than stirred. The Old Waldorf Bar Book matches Grohusko’s recipe but instructs the bartender to frappé rather than stir. JM switches from Byrrh to Dubonnet in 1916.
 

66.5. Byrrh Cocktail*

Note: I am departing slightly from my formerly stated intentions in order to include a recipe which, being featured in two early editions of JM, as well as in Straub 1913/1914, was sadly omitted in JM 1916, and in JM 1933 for all intents and purposes was replaced by the B. V. D. Cocktail, at least positionally speaking—hence the half-number.

My interpretation:
  0.75 oz Noilly Prat Extra Dry
  0.75 oz Bulleit 95 Rye (90 pf)
  1.5 oz Violet Frères Byrrh Grand Quinquina

Fill mixing-glass half-full of fine ice (hand-cracked or mallet-broken), stir, strain into cocktail glass, express orange peel, garnish, and serve. — The 1908 edition specifies Noilly Prat Vermouth, which I was happily able to obey. This turns out to be a good cocktail, justifying its inclusion here. One wonders whether Byrrh stocks or importations were reduced after the Sad Era. JM 1933 features Byrrh in only one recipe: The Byrrh Wine Daisy, where JM 1910 additionally offers the Byrrh Wine Rickey.