Name: Arsenic and Old Lace
Total time: 3 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 60 ml Gin; 15 ml Bianco/blanco vermouth; 15 ml Dry vermouth; 10 ml Chilled water; 2.5 ml Crème de violette; 2.5 ml Absinthe

Arsenic & Old Lace
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Glass:

Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
2 fl oz	Hayman's London Dry Gin
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Strucchi Bianco Vermouth chilled
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Strucchi Dry Vermouth chilled
¹⁄₃ fl oz	Chilled water/mineral water
¹⁄₁₂ fl oz	Rothman & Winter Crème de Violette Liqueur
¹⁄₁₂ fl oz	La Fée Parisienne absinthe

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

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

How to make:

STIR all ingredients with ice.
STRAIN into chilled glass.

Garnish:

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

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Bianco/blanc/blanco vermouth, Dry vermouth - Sulphur Dioxide/Sulphites

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

Temperature and dilution are key to the success of this finely balanced Martini-style cocktail. Originally a shaken cocktail, it benefits from a splash of chilled water.

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History:

This cocktail first appeared in Crosby Gaige's 1941 Cocktail Guide and Ladies' Companion and is named after the eponymous 1939 play by Joseph Kesselring, which opened on Broadway in January 1941. The story went on to be made into the 1944 film starring Cary Grant.

Arsenic and Old Lace
¼ part Absinthe
¾ parts Dry gin
3 dashes Cinzano Dry Vermouth
3 dashes Crème de Violette
Shake well with ice and strain into cocktail glass.
Crosby Gaige, Cocktail Guide and Ladies' Companion, 1941

More cocktails by Crosby Gaige

Nutrition:

One serving of Arsenic & Old Lace contains 189 calories

Alcohol content:

1.8 standard drinks
24.01% alc./vol. (48.02° proof)
25.3 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.

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Showing 5 comments for Arsenic & Old Lace.
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Nick Badovinac

1st March 2025 at 21:23

Is the amount of creme de violette perhaps a typo? Should probably be 1/2 oz, not 1/12, I think.

Simon Difford

2nd March 2025 at 09:21

1/12 oz is correct and is equal to 2.5ml (approx. 1/4 a barspoon). Metric measures are more straightforward. Please click on "measures & measuring" under the recipe above for more info.

1 reply

David Teager

16th November 2022 at 00:03

Is the Gaige citation correct? The recipe is quite different in proportions.

John Hinojos

21st August 2021 at 00:05

Did take one of Nanda Sandhu's recommendations and did an additional spray of absinthe on the top. It did get rid a little of the violet floral taste, with it remaining in the background.

Nanda Sandhu

16th July 2021 at 16:07

I've been making these with a variation with a spray of orange bitters and a spray of absinthe at the end.

Peter Shaw

6th June 2021 at 06:04

Particularly if you are making a mini-version (half quantities) be very careful with the absinthe and creme de violette quantities, as this is critical to the balance of this flavoursome cocktail

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