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Super Secret Cocktail Repository!
I’ve memorized most of our favorite basic cocktail recipes to the point that I’m able to mix them by rote This is usually fine, but when I occasionally want to revisit an old favorite that I’m out of practice making, I’ll sometimes get the ingredients mixed up (was it lemon or lime? Less vermouth or equal proportions?), and need to track down the recipes again. So this list is as much for me as it is for you.
Most of these recipes were either transcribed from cocktail menus or found on the web at some point, and for posterity, I’m documenting them here with their ‘officially’ specified ingredient ratios. But we personally find most liqueur and sweetener-based cocktail recipes to be too sweet, so we typically throttle down the sugary ingredents and make our versions more spirit forward – I’ll note our personal modifications where applicable. Cheers!
The Last Word
This gin-based Prohibition era concoction was catapulted back into the (international) spotlight in 2003 when it was rediscovered by legendary Seattle bartender Murray Stenson in an old recipe book, and has even been credited with helping revive the public fascination with old-school cocktails. Tangy lime combined with herbaceous Chartreuse and distinctive Maraschino are a match made in heaven.
As is often the case, my wife ‘discovered’ this drink before me, and it’s been part of our rotation for more than a decade.
Ingredients
- 3/4 oz. fresh lime juice
- 3/4 oz. London Dry gin (we use Bombay Sapphire)
- 3/4 oz. green Chartreuse
- 3/4 oz. Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
- Lime twist or strip of lime peel, for garnish
Note: This is the ‘official’ recipe, but for our version we tone down the sweetness by halving the Maraschino and doubling the gin to a full shot.
À La Louisiane
Before I discovered this drink at a Paris bar in 2014, I don’t recall ever having a whisky-forward cocktail. I do enjoy whisky, especially bourbon, but only ever ordered it neat or on the rocks before. This drink and that unforgettable evening changed all that.
Nowadays whisky cocktails are my poison of choice; on the occasions when we go out for a bite and the cocktail menu is presented, my first order of business is to scan the list of brown drinks in search of my next À La Louisiane moment. I think it’s the natural complexity that whisky adds to whatever it combines with that brings me back for more.
Ingredients
2 ounces rye whiskey
3/4 ounce sweet vermouth
1/2 ounce Benedictine
3 dashes absinthe
3 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir. Strain into a chilled coupe glass and garnish with skewered Maraschino cherries.
Umeshu Gimlet
In 2022, we inherited two very large jars – we’re talking eight liters each – of homemade umeshu (Japanese plum liqueur). Evidently my aunt produced them years earlier using the traditional method of combining Japanese plums with white liquor (typically shochu) and rock sugar, and storing them for months (or years) in a pantry until the mixture achieves a deep amber tone. At some point we ended up with both jars by way of my mom.
I searched online for simple cocktail recipes that incorporate umeshu, and since we already love a classic Gimlet, this one was a no-brainer. FWIW Japanese plum liqueur is available in liquor stores; you don’t need to wait for years to make it!
Ingredients
- 2 oz. gin
- 3/4 oz. umeshu (Japanese plum liqueur)
- 1/2 lime, squeezed
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir. Strain into a coupe glass (or whatever glass you like).
The MacGyver
Pouring one out for our beloved Downtown Cocktail Room in Las Vegas, which I was sad to learn closed its doors for good last November. Others may go to LV for the casinos and buffets, but for us this bar was always on the itinerary, and occasionally the highlight of a trip; the chill vibe was equaled by their unique and eclectic cocktail menu, which rotated frequently.
The first time I saw this drink on their menu I couldn’t imagine what it might taste like, but my curiosity compelled me to order it, thank goodness. It took some trial and error at home to figure out the right combination of ingredients, but I think I finally came close to reproducing it. RIP DCR!
Ingredients
- 2 oz. bourbon
- 2 oz unsweetened coconut water
- 1/4 oz. Portland Syrups ginger syrup
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir. Strain over ice into a short whisky glass.
Note: it’s easy to go overboard with the ginger syrup, so I suggest adding a bit at a time to suit your tastes.
The Chu-cumber Martini (SushiSamba)
Another Vegas discovery: In November 2014, we broke tradition and visited there for Thanksgiving (in part to see the incomparable Stevie Wonder live the next evening). SushiSamba serves a fusion of Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian cuisine, so perhaps unsurprisingly this refreshing cocktail goes great with Japanese food, especially sushi.
I returned a couple years later and noticed they had altered the recipe at some point after our first visit, but I was able to request the OG version from a kind and helpful bartender. It’s our drink of choice at home whenever temaki sushi is on the menu.
Ingredients
- 1 oz. Hendrick’s gin
- 1 oz. shochu
- 1/2 oz. St. Germain Elderflower liqueur
- 2 cucumber slices
- 1 bar spoon sugar (we substutute agave nectar)
Gently muddle cucumber and sweetner. Mix shochu, St. Germain, Hendrick’s, and lime juice. Shake with ice, pour, and garnish.
"The Usual"
Glad we documented this one: Heartwood Provisions was a “New American” restaurant in downtown Seattle that opened its doors in 2016, but sadly went out of business just two years later. I personally enjoyed their food, and their old-school leaning cocktails were inventive and tasty.
My friend John and I were both fans of this specific drink, and he was able to reverse engineer the recipe over a couple rounds of trial and error. Cardamom bitters and Amaro are key, so I always have them stocked at home now.
Ingredients
- 2 oz. Rittenhouse rye whiskey
- 1/2 oz. Amaro Nardini (we use Amaro Nonino)
- 1 tsp Demerara (we subsitiute brown sugar)
- 1 or 2 dashes Cardamom bitters.
- (optional) 1 dash of citrus bitters
Combine with ice and stir. Strain over ice into a short whisky glass, add ice and garnish with orange peel.
Note: Cardamom bitters are pretty punchy – a little goes a long way. Adjust to your liking!