Tombstone

Difford’s Guide
Discerning Drinkers (13 ratings)

Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
2 oz Straight rye whiskey (100 proof /50% alc./vol.)
13 oz Demerara/Muscovado/brown sugar syrup (2 sugar to 1 water)
12 oz Chilled water omit if using wet ice
2 dash Angostura Aromatic Bitters
2 drop Saline solution 4:1 (20g sea salt to 80g water)
× 1 1 serving
Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

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

How to make:

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

Garnish:

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

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol
Medium
Boozy
Strength 8/10
Sweet
Medium
Dry/sour
Sweet to sour 6/10

Review:

Modern bartending conventions call for this cocktail to be stirred rather than shaken, but the bartender who it celebrates would say that stirring lacked theatre. Shaking also adds dilution and oxygenation. So if you can't bring yourself to shake, then please throw this cocktail, arguably more fitting of the bartender it celebrates.

View readers' comments

History:

Adapted from a recipe created by Dave Wondrich and published in his 2007 book Imbibe!. However, its origins date back to 3rd October 2004, when David Wondrich took a group of bartenders and drinks writers to Woodlawn Cemetery in the New York's Bronx to find and pay their respects at Jerry Thomas' grave. Wondrich went with a bag of ice, glasses, and the ingredients required to make this cocktail. He combined all in a shaker, which was passed around to those present for a ceremonial shake.

TOMBSTONE
By David Wondrich
Shake well with cracked ice:
2 oz 100- or 101-proof straight rye whiskey
1 teaspoon rich simple syrup*
2 dashes Angostura Biters

Strain into chilled glass and twist a thin-cut swatch of lemon peel over the top.

*To make rich simple syrup, stir 4 cups demerara sugar and 2 cups water over low heat until all sugar has dissolved. Let cool, bottle and add 1/2 -ounce grain alcohol or 151-proof rum to retard spoilage.

Dave Wondrich, Imbibe!, 2007

Nutrition:

One serving of Tombstone contains 167 calories

Alcohol content:

  • 1.6 standard drinks
  • 26.04% alc./vol. (26.04° proof)
  • 22.3 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.

Join the discussion

Showing 1 comment for Tombstone.
See discussion in the Forum

Please log in to make a comment
Andy Parnell-Hopkinson’s Avatar Andy Parnell-Hopkinson
23rd March 2024 at 11:38
If you like your Old fashioned served up...