Marguerite Cocktail

Serve in a

Garnish:

Orange (or lemon) zest twist

How to make:

STIR all ingredients with ice and strain into chilled glass.

Review:

An equal parts (Fifty-Fifty) Dry Martini with a hint of orange due to the use of orange curaçao, orange bitters and an orange zest twist.

History:

Not to be confused with the much later, tequila-based Margarita, the Marguerite is a gin-based forerunner to the modern-day Dry Martini. The earliest known Marguerite Cocktail recipe appears in Harry Johnson's 1900 New and Improved Bartenders' Manual.

MARGUERITE COCKTAIL
(Use a large bar glass)
Fill glass 3/4 full of fine-shaved ice;
2 or 3 dashes of orange bitters;
2 or 3 dashes of anisette;
1/2 wine glass of French vermouth;
1/2 wine glass of Plymouth gin;
Stir up well with a spoon, strain into a cocktail glass, putting in a cherry, squeeze piece of lemon peel on top and serve.

Harry Johnson, 1900

Then in his 1903 Bartenders Encyclopedia, Tim Daly omits the anisette in his recipe for the Marguerite.

MARGUERITE COCKTAIL
Use a mixing glass.
Half fill with fine ice.
2 dashes of orange bitters.
1 dash of orange curacoa.
½ wine glass of French vermouth.
½ wine glass of Plymouth gin.
Stir well with spoon, strain into a cocktail glass, twist a piece of lemon peel on top, and serve.

Tim Daly, 1903

The Marguerite, then turns drier and by the 1904 Stuart's Fancy Drinks, in a section headed "New And Up-To-Date Drinks" it becomes 2/3 Plymouth gin [a dry gin] to 1/3 French [dry] vermouth with a dash of orange bitters. Basically a modern-day 2:1 Dry Martini.

Nutrition:

One serving of Marguerite Cocktail contains 146 calories.

Alcohol content:

• 1.6 standard drinks
• 24.7% alc./vol. (49.4° proof)
• 22.7 grams of pure alcohol