Name: Mad Hatter
Total time: 4 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 50 ml Rye whiskey 50% abv; 15 ml Lemon juice; 7.5 ml Lime juice; 15 ml Sugar syrup (2:1); 1 dash Absinthe

Mad Hatter
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Glass:

Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
1 ²⁄₃ fl oz	Straight rye whiskey (100 proof /50% alc./vol.)
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₄ fl oz	Lime juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Sugar syrup 'rich' (2 sugar to 1 water, 65.0°Brix)
1 dash	La Fée Parisienne absinthe

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

Select and pre-chill a COUPE GLASS.
Prepare garnish of lemon zest twist and absinthe (to dash over cocktail in addition to the absinthe shaken with other ingredients).

How to make:

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

Garnish:

EXPRESS lemon zest twist over the cocktail and discard.
FLOAT dash of absinthe.

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Cocktail of the day:

6th October 2026 is Mad Hatter Day

Review:

A rye-laced sour set apart by anis and liquorice notes from absinthe, shaken with the other ingredients and floated on the cocktail.

View readers' comments

History:

Adapted from a recipe in Ted Saucier's 1951 book Bottoms Up.

MAD HATTER
Juice ¼ lemon
Juice ¼ lime
1 teaspoon powdered sugar
1 jigger Schenley Reserve whisky
Ice
Shake. Strain into chilled glass. Add dash absinthe.
Ted Saucier, Bottoms Up, 1951

More cocktails by Ted Saucier

Nutrition:

One serving of Mad Hatter contains 164 calories

Alcohol content:

1.4 standard drinks
21.15% alc./vol. (42.3° proof)
19.9 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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Showing 3 comments for Mad Hatter.
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Loz Horner

7th June at 16:05

I like this very much. The absinthe comes through but doesn’t dominate.

Simon Sedgley

30th May at 13:26

Mad Hatters succumbed to madness because of mercury poisoning associated with their industrial treatment of hat fur. 'Absintheism' was a form of madness attributed to imbibing the 'green fairy'. In these more enlightened times, one would be mad not to try this fruity and complex sour.

Simon Sedgley

30th May at 13:47

btw, to our generous host the absinthe 'dasher' you suggested works a treat. Thanks so much for the advice.

Max Langer

29th May at 20:08

Looks nice, goes directly on my must try list, but the description is not so clear: should it be two dashes of absinthe, one for the shaker, one for the float (would make a nice mnemonic)?

Simon Sedgley

30th May at 13:40

The ingredients in the recipe are always specified separately from and independently of those in the garnish. So the description is clear, as is evident from your reaching the correct conclusion.

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