Our second classic (and vintage) cocktail this evening is the Scoff-Law; it was created by a bartender called Jock at Harry’s New York Bar in 1924, following a competition by the Boston Herald to find an epithet for those who would try to flout the rules of Prohibition; the winning epithet was “scoff-law”.
We’re doing three classic (and vintage) cocktails this evening. Our first is the Manhattan dating from the 1870s which, I was slightly surprised to realise, we haven’t posted before.
We’ve done a lot of Manhattan variants such as the Bourbon Manhattan, Tenessee Rye Manhattan, the Affinity, Rory O’More, Chrchill Manhattan and the Dandy, but not the original.
A Manhattan is a cocktail made with whiskey, sweet vermouth, and bitters. While rye is the traditional whiskey of choice, other commonly used whiskies include Canadian whisky, bourbon, blended whiskey, and Tennessee whiskey. The cocktail is usually stirred then strained into a cocktail glass (although it can be served in a lowball over ice) and garnished traditionally with a maraschino cherry.
Popular history suggests that the drink originated at the Manhattan Club in New York City in the mid-1870s, where it was invented by Iain Marshall for a banquet hosted by Jennie Jerome (Lady Randolph Churchill, mother of Winston) in honor of presidential candidate Samuel J. Tilden. The success of the banquet made the drink fashionable, later prompting several people to request the drink by referring to the name of the club where it originated—”the Manhattan cocktail”. However, Lady Randolph was in France at the time and pregnant, so the story is likely a fiction.
>However, there are prior references to various similar cocktail recipes called “Manhattan” and served in the Manhattan area. By one account it was invented in the 1860s by a bartender named Black at a bar on Broadway near Houston Street.
Our third and final cocktail is the Porn Star Martini. Created by Douglas Ankrah in 2002 at The Townhouse bar in Knightsbridge, London, the Porn star Martini (sometimes called a Passion Fruit Martini to avoid controversy) quickly became an incredibly popular cocktail and can be regarded as a variant of the Gargoyle.
Although the name has proved controversial, Ankrah denied that he named it a “porn star” martini to be deliberately provocative. In interviews, Ankrah claimed he used the “porn star” name to evoke “a stylish and confident drink…[that’s]….pure indulgence, sexy, fun and evocative”. Ankrah also denied being a fan of pornography, or idolising any porn stars in particular, although he says that the original drink was inspired by a visit to Mavericks Revue Bar Gentlemen’s Club, a nude strip club in Cape Town, South Africa.
Our first cocktail is the Impatient Virgin, a simple chocolate and hazelnut dessert cocktail.
Our second cocktail this #FridayNightCocktails is the Scotch Sour. You can use any Scotch for this cocktail, but I’d generally avoid using a peated Scotch as it may conflict with the citrus.
Our first cocktail is the Scotch Old-Fashioned, a Scotch whisky based Old Fashioned variation which can use any type of Scotch from blended to single malt. Being a Scotch-forward cocktail, I find it best to use a good single malt. It can easily show off the quality of a balanced single malt such as Lagavulin.
Our fourth cocktail is the Baileys Chocolate Martini. Is an English Christmas complete with some Baileys? This easy to make Baileys Chocolate Martini elevates Baileys beyond the ordinary.
Our third cocktail this Christmas is the Orange Champagne Mule which was created in France, during World War II by American soldiers using booty liberated from retreating Germans, and named for the four ingredients; brandy, Benedictine, Cointreau and champagne.
This champagne cocktail is unusual in that it calls for room-temperature champagne, making it perfect for using up any leftovers.