Name: Cotillion
Total time: 3 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 45 ml Bourbon whiskey; 15 ml Triple sec; 2.5 ml OP high ester aged pot still rum; 15 ml Orange juice; 15 ml Lemon juice; 2.5 ml Sugar syrup (2:1); 2 drop Saline solution 4:1

Cotillion
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Glass:

Photographed in a Speakeasy Coupe 8.5oz

Ingredients:
1 ¹⁄₂ fl oz	Bourbon whiskey
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Cointreau L'Unique triple sec liqueur
¹⁄₁₂ fl oz	Overproof aged pot still rum (high-ester 4-6 years old)
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Orange juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₁₂ fl oz	Sugar syrup 'rich' (2 sugar to 1 water, 65.0°Brix)
2 drop	Saline solution (20g sea salt to 80g water) or merest pinch of s optional

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

Select and pre-chill a COUPE GLASS.
Prepare garnish of orange zest twist.

How to make:

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

Garnish:

EXPRESS flamed orange zest twist over cocktail, then use as garnish.

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

The original recipe includes "1 dash rum" to "1½ oz bourbon", so suggesting a BIG characterful rum. So don't hold back on the funkiness or strength of your rum. Modern-day triple secs, Cointreau included, aren't nearly as sweet as they were in 1946, hence my addition of half a barspoon of rich sugar syrup to bolster the liqueur's richness. You may only need half barspoon of funk, but this delicious cocktail is reason enough to invest in a properly expressive rum.

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Variations/similar cocktails:

Perhaps also try the regarded riff on this classic by Scott Kennedy of Café Cancale, Chicago, USA:
30ml (1oz) bourbon
22.5ml (¾oz) aged rum
15ml (½oz) orange curaçao
15ml (½oz) orange juice
22.5ml (¾oz) lemon juice

History:

Adapted from a recipe in Lucius Beebe's 1946 The Stork Club Bar Book.

Cotillion Cocktail:
1½ oz. bourbon
½ oz. triple sec
½ oz. orange juice
½ oz. lemon juice
1 dash rum
Shake and serve in 3 oz. cocktail glass.
Lucius Beebe, The Stork Club Bar Book, 1946

Nutrition:

One serving of Cotillion contains 171 calories

Alcohol content:

1.6 standard drinks
21.47% alc./vol. (42.93° proof)
21.9 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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Chris Dimal

12th August 2023 at 17:31

Oh wow, I feel like a kid alongside the grown-ups! Far too sour for me. The lemon and orange just blow out the Bourbon and the rum for the most part, with the dry spirit forward hit of the Bourbon in the end. The rum is barely there, with the Triple Sec just not even existent. I would love to try this with a sweeter orange liqueur (maybe my Curacao adjunct).

Calvin Grant

17th October 2022 at 03:23

Loved Scott Kennedy's riff; dry and tart, balanced, excellent. Will try the original next.

Calvin Grant

19th October 2022 at 02:09

Loved the original also.

Miguel Perales

16th May 2022 at 23:32

Re-visited this cocktail and changed a few things. Went with Appleton Estates 12 yr rum ( since the 12 is aged in ex-Bourbon barrels), used a local Bourbon that was very oak forward (Fiddler Georgia Heartwood) and used Grand Marnier as recommended by John. Definitely became more complex. The oakiness of the bourbon and rum really played well off each other, the citrus was also prominent and the slight amount of simple syrup really balanced it. Really enjoyed the new combination.

John Hinojos

12th May 2022 at 00:35

Delightful cocktail. Dry with some slight sweetness from the Cointreau and orange juice. Bourbon forward at the beginning and the rum at the end. May try it again using Grand Marnier in place of Cointreau to add a little hint of Cognac.

John Hinojos

13th May 2022 at 00:52

So the next night we made this with Grand Marnier instead of the Cointreau. It was a lot drier, but the added hint of cognac was great. If you want to use Grand Marnier, I would suggest a little sugar syrup if you want it sweeter. It was perfect as we like dry cocktails.

Miguel Perales

22nd April 2022 at 23:15

The main review describes it perfectly. A very dry, citrus sour cocktail that ends with the rum ( El Dorado 8 yr) really coming through at the end. A really nice sour.

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