Improved Brandy Cocktail

Difford's Guide
Discerning Drinkers (8 ratings)

Serve in a

Nick & Nora glass

Photographed in a

Bespoke Nick & Nora

Garnish:

Express lemon zest twist over surface of the cocktail, rub lemon zest oils on rim, and discard

How to make:

POUR first 5 ingredients into shaker. Express oils from lemon zest twist into shaker and discard. Add ice, SHAKE and fine strain into chilled glass.

1 2/3 fl oz Rémy Martin V.S.O.P. cognac
1/6 fl oz Gomme syrup
1/12 fl oz Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
2 dash Boker's bitters
1 dash La Fée Parisienne absinthe
1 twist Lemon zest oils
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Read about cocktail measures and measuring.

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David Embury's birthday

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Review:

Yes, yes, I know modern convention calls for this cocktail to be stirred but Jerry Thomas stipulates to shake it and it's much "improved" by shaking. "Shake it to wake it" and brandy shines with the other ingredients, adding complexity rather than challenging its dominance. If you can't bring yourself to shake it, at least throw it!

History:

The Brandy Cocktail first appears in Jerry "The Professor" Thomas' 1862 The Bar-Tender's Guide & Bon Vivant's Companion with this "Improved" version debuting in his 1876 The Bar-Tender's Guide 2nd Edition.

Improved Brandy Cocktail.
(Use ordinary bar glass.)
2 dashes Boker's (or Angostura) Bitters.
3 do. Gum syrup.
2 do. Maraschino.
1 dash Absinthe
1 small piece of the yellow rind of a lemon, twisted to express the oil.
1 small wineglass of brandy.
Fill glass one-third full of shaved ice, shake well, and strain into a fancy cocktail glass.
The flavour is improved by moistening the edge of the cocktail glass with a piece of lemon.

Jerry Thomas, 1876

Alcohol content:

  • 1.1 standard drinks
  • 26.66% alc./vol. (53.32° proof)
  • 15.6 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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David Embury's birthday image

David Embury's birthday

The author of that seminal work, The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, David Augustus Embury was born on this day in 1886 in Pine Woods, upstate New York. He

Guy Fawkes / Bonfire Night Cocktails image

Guy Fawkes / Bonfire Night Cocktails

Remember, remember the fifth of November Gunpowder, treason and plot. I see no reason, why gunpowder treason Should ever be forgot.

National Nacho Day image

National Nacho Day

Not a fan of nachos? Then today is nacho lucky day! Yes, today is National Nacho Day, a day dedicated to those delicious fried tortilla chips that we love

National Harvey Wallbanger Day image

National Harvey Wallbanger Day

Of all the cocktails to have its very own day, the Harvey Wallbanger is probably the most surprising. But, yes, Harvey Wallbanger Day is a thing in American.

Irish Coffee arrived in America this day image

Irish Coffee arrived in America this day

The splendidly named Stanton Delaplane, a columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle, may have won a Pulitzer Prize for Reporting, but his legacy remains

Happy Hour Day image

Happy Hour Day

Every hour should be happy but in most bars, this term does not reflect a collective state of joyousness but a period of comparatively cheap booze. Not

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