Kentucky Colonel

Difford’s Guide
Discerning Drinkers (62 ratings)
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    Kentucky Colonel

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Kentucky Colonel image

Photographed in an UB 1910 Old Fashioned 10.5oz

Ingredients:
2 oz Bourbon whiskey
1⁄2 oz Bénédictine D.O.M. liqueur
× 1 1 serving
Read about cocktail measures and measuring

How to make:

  1. Select and pre-chill an Old-fashioned glass.
  2. Prepare garnish of lemon zest twist.
  3. STIR all ingredients with ice.
  4. STRAIN into ice-filled glass (preferably over a large cube or chunk of block ice).
  5. EXPRESS lemon zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol
Medium
Boozy
Strength 9/10
Sweet
Medium
Dry/sour
Sweet to sour 6/10
More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

If you like Old Fashioneds then there's a good chance you'll appreciate the Kentucky Colonel.

View readers' comments

Variant:

Served straight-up or on-the-rocks.
Monty Carlo (with rye whisky)
Monte Carlos (with añejo tequila)
Monte Cassino (with added Yellow Chartreuse and lemon juice)

History:

The Kentucky Colonel first appears in Jacques Straub's 1914 Manual of Mixed Drinks. This recipe is adapted from a recipe in Stanley M. Jones' 1977 Jones' Complete Barguide.

Kentucky Colonel Cocktail
¼ jigger benedictine.
¾ jigger bourbon.
1 piece of lemon peel.
Stir well and serve in an old style glass.

Jacques Straub, Manual of Mixed Drinks, 1914

KENTUCKY COLONEL
Cocktail Glass
Stir
1¾ Bourbon
¾ Benedictine
Lemon twist

Stanley M. Jones, Jones' Complete Barguide, 1977

Alcohol content:

  • 1.9 standard drinks
  • 34.65% alc./vol. (34.65° proof)
  • 26 grams of pure alcohol

Difford’s Guide remains free-to-use thanks to the support of the brands in green above. Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

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Matt’s Avatar Matt
22nd December 2024 at 03:20
I tried it a couple of ways - as written above, then using a 3:1 ratio (bourbon:Benedictine - as in the historical Jacques Straub version above), and then using a splash of cold water to dilute. I liked a (barely) diluted 3:1 ratio the best - you get the expression of the rich notes of Benedictine that yields to the bourbon flavors in the mid and finish, with the dilution helping separate the flavors and bump the boozy heat down a bit.
2
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Peter McCarthy’s Avatar Peter McCarthy
8th May at 04:45
I think I prefer this with a 3:1 ratio too...
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Joshua Perez’s Avatar Joshua Perez
23rd September 2024 at 13:50
Currently, this recipe references Stan Jones's recipe and credits Harry Craddock in 1930. I couldn't find it in the Savoy Cocktail Book. However, I did find it in the 1933 UKBG Approved Cocktail Book. Are you referencing an earlier UKBG recipe?

Also, I found recipes from the Kentucky Colonel in Jacques Straub's Manual of Mixed Drinks from 1913 and Drinks from 1914
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Simon Difford’s Avatar Simon Difford
23rd September 2024 at 17:13
Sorry. The original quote should have referenced Stan Jones. I’ve corrected and added a quote from Jacques Straub. Many thanks for letting me know and sharing your research.
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Nils Marklund’s Avatar Nils Marklund
5th April 2024 at 15:44
Wow! So few ingridients and so many layers of flavour. As G M Genovese says in the comments: "A little bit of Benedictine goes a long way in richly rounding out a spirit". I used Four roses small batch for this drink. Wich is a "bottom shelf bourbon", i guess. But the Benedictine just took it to a new level.
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Miguel Perales’ Avatar Miguel Perales
27th January 2024 at 12:21
As stated in the description above, this was very reminiscent of an Old Fashioned. I added 2 splashes of Angostura bitters and I also flamed the lemon peel oil. Think of it as adding a subtle lemon finish to an Old Fashioned. Really liked this cocktail.
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G. M. Genovese’s Avatar G. M. Genovese
8th December 2023 at 20:45
Just confirms my earlier experiments with B&B and various whiskies... A little bit of Benedictine goes a long way in richly rounding out a spirit... Used Wild Turkey 101 here. Very nice. (8 Dec 2023, 3:45p)
3
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Olga María Gómez Henderson’s Avatar Olga María Gómez Henderson
20th September 2023 at 20:38
A very tasteful cocktail, I recommend it.
3
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