364. Waldorf Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London dry gin
  1 oz Kronan Swedish punsch
  1 tsp lemon juice
  1 tsp lime juice

Fill mixing-glass with ice, shake well (30-40 seconds), strain into cocktail glass, serve. —This Gin-Swedish Punsch Sour is one of several Waldorf cocktails preserved by Grohusko in JM 1916 and 1933 after Straub’s inclusion of them in 1913/1914. The same recipe appears in the Savoy Cocktail Book (1930). Curiously it does not appear in the Old Waldorf Bar Book (at least in the cocktail section).

360. Van Zandt Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London dry gin
  1 oz Martini & Rossi extra dry vermouth
  1 dash Rothman & Winter apricot liqueur

Fill mixing-glass with ice, shake, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This martini + apricot first appears in JM 1908 as a shaken drink, but is reproduced in Straub as a stirred one. Apparently a man named Van Zandt ordered them frequently enough to get them included in Grohusko’s repertoire. It is absent from other cocktail books.
  

359. Van Wyck Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London dry gin
  1 oz Plymouth Sloe Gin
  2 dashes Regan’s Orange Bitters

Shake well with ice, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This frothy yin-yang Duo of strong and syrupy hanging in dubious balance, strapped together with a cord of faint but deep orange bitters, first appears in Straub 1913 with “dry gin.” In JM 1916 it becomes the second of three “Vans” in the cocktail section of Grohusko’s, also specifying dry gin. This agreement suggests the Waldorf Bar as the common source, which is tentatively confirmed by reference to the Old Waldorf Bar Book (1931), where the drink appears with Old Tom gin and sloe gin in a 2:1 ratio, with the orange bitters, stirred, with “fruit in glass.” It was apparently to be drunk in the Van Wyck tunnel.

358. Van Lee Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London dry gin
  0.75 oz Dubonnet Rouge
  0.25 oz The Famous Grouse scotch whisky

Fill mixing-glass with broken ice, stir, strain into a cocktail glass, serve. — This variant on an Apéritif Cocktail (be it Byrrh, Saint Raphael, or Dubonnet), spiced up with a notion of Scotch whisky, first appears in JM1910 with Byrrh instead of Dubonnet, as usual in the earlier books. It is not picked up by Straub, and appears to be named for one of the local fixtures at Jack’s bar.

356. U. C. Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  1 oz Martini & Rossi Extra Dry Vermouth
  1 dash St. George absinthe verte

Fill shaker with ice, shake about 30 strokes, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This shaken Martini+absinthe recipe first appears in Straub 1913 without a hint as to the source of the name.
 

353. Tussetto Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1.25 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  0.75 oz El Maestro Sierra Oloroso Sherry
  2 dashes Regan’s Orange Bitters

Fill mixing-glass half full of broken ice, stir, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This recipe, otherwise known as a Sherry Martini, is closely linked to the Tuxedo Club, also spelled Tucseto or Tucsedo after the Indian term for which the eponymous community club was named. Grohusko’s spelling here seems unique, and may be regarded as an Italianized interpretation of the spelling, though it first appears that way not in JM 1916 but in Straub 1913. The Savoy (1930) has two Tuxedos of the martini+absinthe vein, neither with sherry. It is the most simple and elegant of all the Tuxedo-related drinks. Further information for this and the next drink, the Tuxedo proper, is found here.
 

350. Turf Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  1 oz Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth
  2 dashes St. George Absinthe Verte
  2 dashes Luxardo maraschino
  2 dashes Regan’s Orange Bitters
  1 dash Fee Brothers Cardamom Bitters

Fill mixing-glass half full of ice, stir well, strain into cocktail glass, drop in olive, serve. — This Dry Martini augmented by dashes from half the liquor cabinet appears in JM1908 and continues unchanged. It becomes the Turf Cocktail No. 1 in Straub 1913, where the No. 2 is Holland gin, sweet vermouth, and bitters—essentially a Sweet Martini with genever, which is the recipe named “Turf Club” in JM1916 (see the next post), but simply “Turf” in the Old Waldorf Bar Book (1931).

 

349. Tulane Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  1 oz Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth
  1 tsp strawberry syrup

Fill shaker with fine ice, shake, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This Dry Martini with a strawberry twist first appears in Straub 1914. Since I had strawberry syrup made recently, I used that instead of strawberry brandy. The difference is probably minimal at such a small quantity.

347. Trowbridge Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  1 oz Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth
  1 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters

Fill mixing-glass half full with ice, stir, strain into whisky glass, garnish with orange twist, serve. — This Sweet Martini with a twist, served down, first appears in Straub 1913 in a 2:1 ratio, sweetened up to 1:1, as usual, when copied by JM1916. There is no mention of ice, so a legitimate form of this drink would include a direct pour, esp. if the vermouth is duly chilled.

346. Trilby Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  1 oz Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth
  1 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters
  1 dash Angostura aromatic bitters
  2 barspoons Rothman & Winter crème de violette

Fill mixing-glass half full with ice, stir well (20-30 seconds), strain into cocktail glass, add cherry, add crème de violette carefully so that it settles in a clear layer at the bottom of the glass. — Of all the recipes going by the name Trilby, this one may be the most perplexing, due to the fact that the specific gravity of the concoction is not high enough to support a crème of any kind on its surface. This cannot be traced back further than JM1916. Straub 1913 has the recipe but calls only for a 1/6 jigger of Crème Yvette and does not specify floating or layering of any kind. He also uses Old Tom gin (that is usually the source of Grohusko’s generic term “gin,” and indeed it is supported by earlier editions calling for Tom gin). McElhone’s 1927 recipe replaces the Old Tom gin with scotch and the
Crème Yvette with Parfait d’Amour. The Old Waldorf Bar Days (1931) keeps (or rather, is the source of) Grohusko’s recipe, without specifying float or layering of the Crème Yvette, thus confirming the propriety of laying the blame at the feet of Grohusko (or whoever was his direct source).

345. Treasurer Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1.5 oz Castle & Key London Dry Gin
  0.5 oz Noilly Prat Extra Dry Gin
  1 slice orange (for mixing)

Fill mixing-glass with broken ice, stir, strain, garnish with orange twist, serve. — This strong dry martini with an orange twist appears in Straub 1913 by the slightly different name Treasury, with an orange slice instead of twist, to be shaken (frappéed) with the other ingredients. I have included the orange component on both ends for the added distinction from other similar recipes.

 

343. Taxi Cocktail

My interpretation:

  1 oz Castle & Key dry gin

  1 oz Dolin Dry

  2 tsp lime juice

  2 tsp St. George absinthe verte

Fill shaker with fine ice, frappé / shake vigorously 40-50 strokes, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This cold dry martini with lime and absinthe comes from Straub 1913 and finds its way thence into JM1916, which changes barspoons to teaspoons but keeps everything else the same.

342. Tango Cocktail

My interpretation:

  1.25 oz Castle & Key Gin

  0.75 oz Vermut Lustau

  1/2 tsp Copper & Kings brandy

Fill shaker with ice, shake about 40 strokes, serve. — This recipe comes from Straub 1914 (not in 1913 ed.) where the brandy is specified to be Apricot Brandy. That specifier is unapologetically omitted in JM1916. McElhone in 1927 uses the name Tango for a combination of Plymouth gin, sweet vermouth, orange juice, and curaçao, finished with an orange twist. The Savoy (1930) follows suit, omitting the twist. The Old Waldorf Bar Days (1931) has two Tangos: 1 is a dry martini with egg white, shaken; 2 calls for dry and sweet vermouth, rum, gin, and orange juice frappé, essentially a variant on the McElhone recipe.

307. Royal Smile Cocktail

My interpretation:
  2 oz Castle & Key Dry Gin
  2 T orange juice
  1 egg white

Beat egg white and orange juice briefly, then add gin. Shake well (30 seconds), strain into claret glass, serve. — There are different recipes by this name, to which is variously appended, or not, the epithet “Cocktail.” Straub has a “Royal Smile,” implied to be a cocktail, consisting of apple brandy, dry vermouth, grenadine, and lime (or lemon) juice shaken with egg white and served in a claret glass. McElhone has similar, replacing the dry vermouth with gin. In fact, JM 1912, where we first find our present recipe, has that recipe also, but without the “Cocktail” epithet, and without the egg white:

 The applejack-gin-grenadine-sour (here lemon instead of lime) omits the egg (as does the Old Waldorf) and makes it essentially a Jack Rose stiffened with a little gin—but Jack’s Jack Rose has a squirt of seltzer. Meanwhile, the Royal Smile Cocktail here is written out, unusually, in 19th-century paragraph form, is an orange blossom with egg white, served in the other drink’s claret glass. — I believe this cocktail has its cousin in the Savoy “Royal Cocktail No. 1” which gives lemon juice and powdered sugar instead of orange juice, and uses the whole egg (with the yolk); the color would be about the same, and an inaccurate visual memory of the drink’s preparation might explain the difference. This in turn is related to the Royal Fizz, which adds seltzer. Indeed, the drink resembles the basis of an orange-gin fizz minus the fizz. The present recipe might well be of Jack’s own devising.

 

305. Rose Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz (overfull) Castle & Key Dry Gin
  0.5 oz (scant) Jack Rudy grenadine
  0.5 oz (scant) fresh orange juice

Fill shaker half-full with cracked ice, shake 20-30 seconds, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This recipe (the name has been taken for many differing recipes of various qualities) is first found in Straub 1913. The Savoy Cocktail Book (1930) attempts to gather most of these. What they all have in common is dry gin, and several of them, grenadine (being helpful for achieving the right color). The main division is English vs. French, the former being a kind of punch or blossom, the latter distinguished by having some kind of cherry ingredient (either kirsch or cherry brandy) along with something to weaken or sweeten (vermouth or grenadine). The English is reflected in our recipe in the punchlike mixture of succulent orange juice, grenadine for color and sweetening (shared with the French family of Roses) and gin, of course. The Savoy English recipe is a more complex punch: lemon, grenadine, apricot, dry vermouth, dry gin. The Old Waldorf Bar Days (1931) version is an outlier, simply 4:1 dry gin and Grand Marnier. The modern Rose adopted by the IBA shows that the French won out, and is traced back to McElhone’s recipe in Barflies and Cocktails (1931)—2/3 dry vermouth with a little kirschwasser and redcurrant syrup (generally replaced by grenadine today). Adding absinthe to our recipe makes it essentially a Monkey Gland, another of McElhone’s creations. Replacing grenadine with orange liqueur or sweet vermouth gives us an Orange Blossom. Here is an interesting survey of Rose cocktails.

304. Rolls-Royce Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key Dry Gin
  0.5 oz Dolin Dry
  0.5 oz Vermut Lustau
  1 dash DOM Benedictine

Fill shaker half-full with cracked ice, shake 20-30 seconds, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This Perfect Martini with Benedictine is found in the Savoy Cocktail Book (1930) and was found popular or worthy enough to be included in JM 1933.

303. Robinson Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key Dry Gin
  0.75 oz Dubonnet Rouge
  0.25 oz fresh orange juice

Fill mixing-glass half-full with cracked ice, shake, strain into cocktail glass, serve. — This recipe, somewhere between a Bronx and a Martini, with Dubonnet for vermouth and orange juice for orange bitters, dates back to the original JM 1908. The mixture ends up somewhat similar to the newer Marble Hill, named for a district in New York but has a much better claim historically.

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.
 

292. Racquet Club Cocktail

My interpretation:
  1 oz Castle & Key Dry Gin
  1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth

Fill mixing-glass with ice, stir (or more authentically, shake), strain into cocktail glass, twist orange peel over and garnish; serve. — This 1:1 Dry Martini with a twist first appears by this name in Straub 1913 and is borrowed for JM 1916. It appears in Savoy (1930) as a 2:1 Dry Martini shaken with orange bitters. The Old Waldorf Bar Days (1931) has both orange bitters and peel, and calls for frappé (thus shaken). The lack of instruction whether to shake or stir is due to the omission in typically terse Straub.