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Army & Navy

Difford’s Guide
Discerning Drinkers (506)
Army & Navy image
Measurements in:
Serves:
1
Ingredients
2 fl oz Hayman's London Dry Gin
3⁄4 fl oz Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
1⁄2 fl oz Monin Almond (Orgeat) Syrup
2 dash Angostura Aromatic Bitters
2 drop Saline solution (20g sea salt to 80g water) or pinch of salt (optional)

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

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How to make

Glassware

Serve in a Coupe glass

Prepare

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

Method

  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.

Flavour Profile

No alcohol
Medium
Boozy
Sweet
Medium
Dry/sour
More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Health & Nutrition

Nutrition:

One serving of Army & Navy contains 183 calories

Alcohol content:

  • 1.4 standard drinks
  • 18.72% alc./vol. (37.45° proof)
  • 19.7 grams of pure alcohol

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

  • Orgeat (almond) sugar syrup (2:1) — Nuts

Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

History

This cocktail first appears in David A. Embury's 1948 The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks so establishing a 'made before' date. Little else is known but based upon its name, folk suggest it originated at The Army and Navy Club in Washington, D.C.. The club's lounge is also said to be "where the famous Daiquiri cocktail was introduced to the United States."

Thanks to Embury, we know the original recipe comprised a 2:1:1 formula, but the lawyer-turned-cocktail writer opts for an 8:2:1 formula, describing the original formulation as "horrible". I've ended up with an 8:3:2 formula in the quest for balance and deliciousness.

ARMY & NAVY.
1 part Lemon Juice
1 part Orgeat
2 parts Gin
1 have given the original recipe which, to my mind, is horrible. If made to my 1:2:8 formula, it is merely the Gin Sour with orgeat used in place of sugar syrup.

David A. Embury, 1948

More cocktails by David A. Embury

Review

Almond and lemon flavoured gin. Subtle, citrus and, despite generous orgeat, fairly dry.

Cocktail of the day:

3rd November 2026 is David Embury's birthday

Variations/similar cocktails

With amaretto: 60ml (2oz) gin, 20ml (⅔oz) lemon juice, 10ml (⅓oz) orgeat syrup, 7.5ml (¼oz) amaretto liqueur, and 1 dash aromatic bitters.

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$3.09 per cocktail*

Makes a minimum of 12.5 cocktails.
Shipping and applicable tax calculated at checkout.


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Gallery

Comments & Discussion

trendomexico Premium Member
I made mine with Monin Orgeat and Monkey, I went far with the first, so it end very sweet. Many times I use only two barspoons. Nevertheless is wonderful. Very refreshing an just a little bitter at the end.
score: 0
The Tipsy Alchemist Premium Member
A superb drink. Made with Tanqueray No. 10, it is gin-forward, surprisingly citrusy, yet the orgeat comes through quite clearly to make an almost clarified yogurt taste. Would recommend
score: 1
Jason Gregory
There's a variation with bourbon instead of gin called Baby's first bourbon. I hate the name lol, though it makes sense because I do hate whiskey and old fashioneds but love whiskey sours, and it's essentially a whiskey sour with orgeat instead of simple syrup.
score: 1
Jason Gregory
Simple yet elegant as they say
score: 1
Mike Jameson
My absolute favorite cocktail, perfect for any season but especially summer. I found this a great way to test different bitters such as Lemon or Almond to enhance the existing citrus and nuttiness.
score: 2
Frederic D. Premium Member
I often like my drinks a tad sweeter than Simon, but even for me this shouldn't be any sweeter. It's well balanced as is, but it wouldn't take much for the orgeat to take it into cloying territory. The 8:3:2 works well, resulting in a delicate botanical sour with almond hints.
score: 1
rebdecassis
Delicious! Tastes like the winter holidays to me for some reason. Speaking as someone currently in April. So that's interesting.
score: 0
Florian Ruf Premium Member
Due to a misreading I put 2,25cl Orgeat in the tin. But I noticed it before shaking used more lemon and the saline solution and resulted in a very good, maybe a bit too Orgeat-forward cocktail.
score: 1
Peter Griffith Premium Member
Great drink. Instead of mixing the bitters, I dotted them on the surface of the drink in the glass. Makes it look fancy!
score: 1
Martin Boyer Premium Member
Wonderful drink. At the suggestion of a local restaurant that introduced me to this cocktail, I used 1.5 Highclere Castle gin, 0.5 Lustau cream sherry, 0.75 lemon, 0.5 Giffard orgeat and 2 dashes AB. Wonderful.
score: 3
Widmann Alcântara
Hi,Martin. I tried your recipe. It's wonderful indeed.
score: 2

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Difford’s Shop logo
$3.09 per cocktail*

Makes a minimum of 12.5 cocktails.
Shipping and applicable tax calculated at checkout.


Orders are processed by a licensed Fulproof retailer. The buy now button is added simply for convenience.

Checkout

* May not include all ingredients. Price per cocktail is an estimate based on cost of one cocktail with ingredients shown above and does not include shipping.

Visit Difford’s Shop USA

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