Pre-prohibition Drinks of the Week [No. 2]
By Andrew “the Alchemist”
Sunday, September 26, 2010
--------------------
--------------------
It’s Sunday, and time for another edition of the Pre-prohibition Drinks of the Week!
--------------------
--------------------
Pre-prohibition Ensemble of the Week:
The Marble Wall
From: The Bartenders’ Encyclopedia – by Tim Daly (1903)
Service-ware: 4 fl-oz. stemmed glass cordial goblet
Build in the service-ware:
→ 1 fl-oz. American rye whiskey
→ 2 fl-oz. dry white wine
Enjoy!
Note: the old-fashioned gin glass is indicated for this drink, for which the still-available 4 fl-oz. stemmed cordial glass substitutes nicely. The traditional portion for un-mixed spirits is 2 fl-oz., while the traditional portion for wine is 4 fl-oz. – so this drink is a half-portion of the whiskey with a half-portion of the wine. No garniture is indicated with this drink – but one might prefer to garnish it by twisting a strip of lemon zest over it, and then dropping it in.
--------------------
--------------------
Pre-prohibition Sling of the Week:
The Liberal Cocktail
From: Modern American Drinks – by George Kappeler (1895)
Service-ware: 4½ fl-oz. glass cocktail goblet (chilled)
Combine in a mixing glass:
→ 1 fl-oz. American rye whiskey
→ 1 fl-oz. Torani™ amer (grand bitters)
→ ¼ fl-oz. simple 1:1 sugar syrup
→ method ice
Stir slowly to mix, chill and dilute
Strain into the service-ware
Garnish by twisting a strip of lemon zest over the drink and then dropping it in
Enjoy!
Note: Picon™ Amer is indicated as the bitters in this cocktail. Picon replaced that product with one of a different formula in the 1970’s. Luckily, Torani produces a grand bitters purportedly-according to the original Picon formula.
--------------------
--------------------
Pre-prohibition Posset of the Week:
The Angel’s Dream
From: The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book – by Albert Stevens Crockett (1935)
This drink is from the main layer of material in Crockett’s book, which he states came from the original recipe book in his possession that had been used in the hotel’s bar until it closed in 1919.
Service-ware: 5 fl-oz. glass wine goblet (chilled)
Combine in a mixing tin:
→ 1 fl-oz. maraschino liqueur
→ 1 fl-oz. crème de violette liqueur
→ 1 fl-oz. heavy cream
→ plenty of method ice
Cover with half-tin and shake vigorously to mix, chill, dilute and aerate
Finely-strain into the service-ware
Garnish with an authentic maraschino cherry on a skewer
Enjoy!
--------------------
--------------------
Pre-prohibition Punch of the Week:
Sangaree (á la 1806)
From: Notes on the West Indies – by George Pinckard (1806)
“Punch and sangaree are commonly taken as the diluents of the morning. The latter forms a most delightful drink. A glass of it, taken when parching of thirst, from heat and fatigue, may be ranked among the highest gratifications of our nature! At such a moment, a draught of sangaree approaches nearer, perhaps, to god-like nectar, than any other known liquor. It consists of half Madeira wine and half water, acidulated with the fragrant lime, sweetened with sugar, and flavored with nutmeg.” (Pinckard, 1806)
Sangaree itself is indicated by the Oxford English Dictionary as being extant as early as 1736, when the Gentleman’s Magazine of London mentions it with the line, “Mr. Gordon, a punch-seller in the Strand, had devised a new punch made of strong Madeira wine and called Sangre.”
By the mid 1800’s, sangaree had found its way to France, where it was called “sangris” and where that name was folk-etymologized as meaning “gray blood.”
It seems even later that the drink travelled to Spain, where it would become known as “sangria” and would eventually be made from any type of wine.
The ‘sangaree’ found in American books of the late 1800’s is a mutation from its original punch form of the 1700’s into an American sling.
Service-ware: 10½ fl-oz. glass punch tumbler
→ 4 fl-oz. service ice (4 full-ounce cubes)
Combine in a mixing tin:
→ 2 fl-oz. verdelho Madeira wine
→ 1 fl-oz. freshly-pressed Key lime juice
→ 1 tbsp. superfine sugar
→ 1½ fl-oz. flat water
→ plenty of method ice
Cover with half-tin and shake vigorously to mix, chill, dilute and aerate
Finely-strain into the service-ware
Insert straw
Garnish with nutmeg grated over the top of the drink
Enjoy!
Note: the source indicates equal parts Madeira wine and water, but I use less water to allow for dilution from method and service ice. If you cannot find verdelho Madeira, rainwater Madeira will do.
Tip: go have a seat at the bar in Jaraguá at 4493 Beverly boulevard in Los Angeles, and tell the bartender that Andrew suggested the old-time Sangaree.
--------------------
--------------------
Pre-prohibition Grog of the Week:
The Brain Duster
From: Modern American Drinks – by George Kappeler (1895)
Service-ware: 9½ fl-oz. glass highball tumbler (no ice)
Combine in mixing tin:
→ 1 fl-oz. absinthe
→ ½ fl-oz. rye whiskey
→ ½ fl-oz. sweet vermouth
→ ¼ fl-oz. simple 1:1 sugar syrup
→ plenty of method ice
Cover with half-tin and shake vigorously to mix, chill, dilute and aerate
Strain into the service-ware, and then add:
→ 4 fl-oz. charged water (this should not be enough to fill the highball tumbler)
No straw or garniture is necessary, as this drink is meant to be consumed quickly
Enjoy!
Note: the original method seems to have been to stir rather than to shake – but, for this drink, I prefer to shake with plenty of method ice in order to minimize dilution, which is flat, and threatens the charged water that makes up the body of this grog. Also, if a 7 fl-oz. fizz glass is available, it should be used instead, in which the charged water can be added to the fill-point.
--------------------
--------------------
Pre-prohibition Succulent of the Week:
The Monte Carlo
Adapted from: The Bartenders’ Encyclopedia – by Tim Daly (1903)
Service-ware: 5 fl-oz. glass wine goblet (chilled)
Combine in a mixing tin:
→ 1¾ fl-oz. Cognac brandy (or good French brandy)
→ ¼ fl-oz. Bénédictine™ liqueur
→ 1 fl-oz. freshly-pressed orange juice
→ 1 sprig of fresh mint (clapped)
→ plenty of method ice
Cover with half-tin and shake vigorously to mix, chill, dilute and aerate
Finely-strain into the service-ware
Garnish with a quarter-wheel slice of orange
Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment