Alabazam (short)

Serve in a

How to make:

1. Select and pre-chill a Nick & Nora glass.
2. Prepare garnish of lemon zest twist.
3. SHAKE all ingredients with ice.
4. FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.
5. EXPRESS lemon zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Review:

Orange, lemon, and a generous splash of aromatic bitters complement this cocktail's brandy base.

Variant:

Alabazam (tall)

History:

The Alabazam first appears in Leo-Engel's 1878 American Other Drinks.

ALABAZAM.
Use tumbler.
One tea-spoonful of Angostura bitters; two tea-spoons of orange Curaçao; one tea-spoonful of white sugar; one tea-spoonful of lemon juice; half a wine glass of brandy. Shake up well with fine ice and strain in a claret glass.

Leo Engel, American Other Drinks, 1880

However, the short, straight-up, bitter-heavy 1878 recipe bears little resemblance to the tall Alabazam we know today, and which comes from William Schmidt's 1892 The Flowing Bowl – When and What to Drink.

Alabazam.
A large bar glass,
The juice of ½ lemon,
1 barspon of sugar,
1 dash of Seltzer; mix this well;
Fill your glass 2/3 with fine ice,
2 dashes of curaçao,
1 drink of brandy.
Stir well, strain, and serve.

William Schmidt, The Flowing Bowl – When and What to Drink, 1892

Leo Engel's short Alabazam appears in a more refined form in Louis Fouquet's 1896 French book Bariana: Recueil de toutes boissons americains et anglaises. This is where our recipe is adapted from.

ALABAZAM COCKTAIL
Verre D
Prendre le verre à mélange A, glace en pelits morceaux, 4 traits d'angostura, 8 traits de curaçao, 4 gouttes de jus de citron. Remplir avec cognac Curlier, bien agiter avec cuillère, passer, verser zeste de citron el servir.

Translation: ALABAZAM COCKTAIL
Glass D ["Cocktail glass." Water capacity: 90 grams]
Take mixing glass A, ice cubes, 4 dashes of angostura, 8 dashes of curaçao, 4 drops of lemon juice. Fill with Curlier cognac, shake well with a spoon, strain, add lemon zest and serve.

William Schmidt, The Flowing Bowl – When and What to Drink, 1892

Nutrition:

One serving of Alabazam (short) contains 151 calories.

Alcohol content:

• 1.2 standard drinks
• 25.18% alc./vol. (50.36° proof)
• 17 grams of pure alcohol