Name: Oriental
Total time: 4 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 45 ml Rye whiskey 50% abv; 22.5 ml Rosso/sweet vermouth; 22.5 ml Orange Curaçao; 15 ml Lime juice

Oriental
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Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
1 ¹⁄₂ oz	Straight rye whiskey (100 proof /50% alc./vol.)
³⁄₄ oz	Strucchi Rosso Vermouth
³⁄₄ oz	Orange Curaçao liqueur
¹⁄₂ oz	Lime juice (freshly squeezed)

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

How to make:

Select and pre-chill a Coupe glass.
Prepare garnish of orange zest twist.
SHAKE all ingredients with ice.
FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.
EXPRESS orange zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Rosso/rouge/sweet vermouth (di Torino) - Sulphur Dioxide/Sulphites

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

Be warned, this lightly sour, orangey whiskey-based cocktail packs a punch.

View readers' comments

Variant:

James Joyce

History:

Adapted from the 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book where author Harry Craddock, writes of this drink, "In August, 1924, an American Engineer nearly died of fever in the Philippines, and only the extraordinary devotion of Dr. B– saved his life. As an act of gratitude the Engineer gave Dr. B– the recipe of this cocktail." This recipe first appears in Count Benvenito Martini's 1916 book Cocktail Ology.

ORIENTAL
1-2 Rye
1-4 Italian vermouth
1-4 white Curacoa
Juice of 1-2 Lime
Shake and strain into cocktail glass.
Fati-meh! She dahnces! And when she shakes, not a single ounce is idle!
Count Benvenito Martini, 1916

ORIENTAL COCKTAIL.
1/2 Rye Whisky.
¼ Italian Vermouth.
¼ White Curaçao
The Juice of ½ Lime.
Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.
Harry Craddock, 1930

More cocktails by Harry Craddock

Nutrition:

One serving of Oriental contains 209 calories

Alcohol content:

1.8 standard drinks
24.61% alc./vol. (24.61° proof)
25.8 grams of pure alcohol

More Classic/vintage cocktails

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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Showing 8 comments for Oriental.
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Robert Spain

29th November 2024 at 22:14

Delicious and I concur with other drinkers, all the ingredients shine, and the cocktail is more than the sum of the parts.

Nathalie O'Flynn

20th December 2023 at 18:12

I’m having a James Joyce right now instead lol

John Hinojos

8th September 2023 at 00:28

Very nice and the ingredients all work together well. Liking cocktails a bit on the dry/sour side, did find this just about at my maximum for sweetness. Loved the way the vermouth and rye enhance each other.

adrian lord

14th June 2023 at 18:25

I made this for the first time this evening, with slight trepidation, thinking I probably wouldn’t like it. I needn’t have worried. It’s extraordinary how the ingredients combine to create a drink which is more than the sum of its parts and far more agreeable than you would ever think it could be. Initially I felt that I could not discern the individual ingredients, but with further sipping and savouring one can differentiate them. Sweet, yet, acid in equal measure, it’s quite exquisite.

Dávid Ugróczi

7th January 2023 at 20:00

It is a nice and balanced drink.

Noel Sharkey

10th October 2022 at 08:58

May I the opportunity correct Harry Craddock historical inaccuracy. He says that the American engineer gave the recipe to Dr. B in 1924. However, the recipe appears in 1916 in Cocktail-ology by Count Benvinito Martini. The Craddock version is an exact copy.