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Olympic

Difford’s Guide
Discerning Drinkers (118)
Measurements in:
Serves:
1
Ingredients
1 fl oz Cognac (brandy)
1 fl oz Ferrand Dry Curaçao liqueur
1 fl oz Orange juice (freshly squeezed)
1 dash Orange Bitters by Angostura (optional)

How to make

Glassware

Serve in a Coupe glass

Prepare

  1. Select and pre-chill a COUPE GLASS.
  2. Prepare garnish of orange zest twist.

Method

  1. SHAKE all ingredients with ice.
  2. FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.

Garnish

  1. EXPRESS orange zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Flavour Profile

No alcohol
Medium
Boozy
Strength 7/10
Sweet
Medium
Dry/sour
Sweet to sour 6/10

Health & Nutrition

Nutrition:

One serving of Olympic contains 179 calories

Alcohol content:

  • 1.4 standard drinks
  • 19.61% alc./vol. (39.22° proof)
  • 19 grams of pure alcohol
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History

Adapted from a recipe in Harry Craddock's 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book.

OLYMPIC COCKTAIL.
1/3 Orange Juice.
1/3 Curacao.
1/3 Brandy.
Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

Harry Craddock, 1930


This cocktail is thought to have been named after the RMS Olympic, one of three almost identical Olympic-class ships built for the White Star Line. The other two, the Titanic and the Britannic, became much better known due to their demise - the Titanic sank after colliding with an iceberg on her maiden voyage, while the Britannic, which never operated as a passenger ship, hit a mine and sank while serving as a hospital ship during the First World War. In contrast, the Olympic sailed for 24 years from 1911 to 1935, including as a troopship during the First World War, earning her the nickname Old Reliable. The Olympic was sold for scrap in April 1935.

Review

The perfect balance of cognac and orange.

Cocktail of the day:

23rd June 2026 is The day the Olympic Games were founded

Variations/similar cocktails

Olympic Class
Bull's Head

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$1.44 per cocktail*

Makes a minimum of 25 cocktails.
Shipping and applicable tax calculated at checkout.


Orders are processed by a licensed Fulproof retailer. The buy now button is added simply for convenience.

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* May not include all ingredients. Price per cocktail is an estimate based on cost of one cocktail with ingredients shown above and does not include shipping.

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Comments & Discussion

Andy Prior Premium Member
Tastes like orange diabetes. Way too sweet and not really balanced.
score: 0
Robert Spain
Love it. I used Duque de Alba brandy and Pierre Ferrand Curaçao. What I've enjoyed the most is that Curaçao shines here, compared to so many other cocktails where it gets obscured by other ingredients.
score: 1
Chris Brislawn
Revisited this recipe. A particularly good variation is to increase the cognac (Remy 1738) to 1.5 oz for somewhat drier 3:2:2 proportions and split the curacao between 1/2 oz P. Ferrand Dry (orange) Curacao and 1/2 oz P. Ferrand Limited Edition Late Harvest Moroccan Yuzu Curacao. The orange bitters were replaced by a dash of Bitter Truth Lemon Bitters. No yuzu zest so garnished with an orange twist. The Moroccan yuzu curacao and lemon bitters increase the complexity while preserving the citrus focus of the original and take this to a new level.
score: 0
Alex Spyrou Premium Member
Since it's Olympic, I made it with Metaxa 7 star, and it really shone through! Lovely drink.
score: 1
C1um5yBar5teward
I used Camus Isle de Re cliffside cellar cognac for this. There's a saltiness to it (if that's the right word, not sure how best to describe it?) that compliments the sweetness of the drink and gives it more bite or mouthfeel maybe. Plus I go heavy on the orange bitters for my taste buds (about 8 dashes does it for me). For a higher washline in my coupe glasses I upped everything to 1.5oz. Happy to have found this as I often have lots of peeled unjuiced oranges. Well, not any more!
score: 1
Ryan Harrold Premium Member
This drink is simple yet quite refreshing, without the cognac over dominating orange juice, which I used Monnet VS Cognac and things turned out great, which I’m glad I decided to try this
score: 1
Chris Dimal
I used St. Remy XO (a brandy under the parent company of Remy Martin Cognac), alongside Marie Brizard Orange Curacao (nothing else available around). Was really delicious. What I noticed is that the orange bitters are what makes this turn from an after dinner drink to an anytime drink, with a nice zingy, sharp orange flavour.
score: 1
Mike Gibb Premium Member
"bitters are what makes this turn from an after dinner drink to an anytime drink" .. possibly the most dangerous (yet alluring) seed of an idea below-the-line on this entire site ..
score: 4
Calvin Grant Premium Member
Plant that one and grow it.♧♤♧♤♧
score: 2
Chris Brislawn
Decided to make this and discovered we were out of orange juice, so I tried it with pink grapefruit juice instead (a "Special Olympian"). I cut the juice slightly to 3/4 oz and used 1 oz each of ABK6 VSOP and Ferrand Dry Curacao, with 2 dashes Angostura orange bitters. The curacao played nicely with the bitter edge of the grapefruit juice. The drink didn't seem too sweet, and our taste runs a bit drier than Simon's.
score: 2
Deimos Ares
whenever there is triple sec, curaçao, cointreau or grand marnier, I replace it with the italian Aurum. I know that the 3 liqueurs mentioned are not synonymous, but with Aurum I always get the best results
score: 2
Frederic D. Premium Member
Made with Pierre Ferrand 1840 and Grand Marnier. I skipped the bitters since I was looking for both sweet and orange-based. This worked really well for my current mood, and definitely one I will revisit.
score: 1

Showing the first 10 of 16 comments.

Difford’s Shop logo
$1.44 per cocktail*

Makes a minimum of 25 cocktails.
Shipping and applicable tax calculated at checkout.


Orders are processed by a licensed Fulproof retailer. The buy now button is added simply for convenience.

Checkout

* May not include all ingredients. Price per cocktail is an estimate based on cost of one cocktail with ingredients shown above and does not include shipping.