Serve in a Nick & Nora glass
1 2⁄3 oz | Rémy Martin V.S.O.P. cognac |
1⁄3 oz | Orange Curaçao liqueur |
1⁄3 oz | Pineapple juice |
1⁄6 oz | Monin Pineapple Syrup |
2 dash | Angostura Aromatic Bitters |
31st December 2025 is New Year's Eve
The bitters are crucial in balancing this after-dinner brandy and pineapple cocktail.
An East India (No. 2) classically has pineapple syrup or pineapple juice, while an East India No. 1 instead calls for raspberry syrup. Pineapple syrup is first recorded in an East India in Robert Vermeire's 1922 Cocktails: How to Mix Them and is repeated in Frank Meier's 1936 The-Artistry of Mixing Drinks and it's Meier, who worked at Ritz Bar, Paris from 1921 to 1947, who is said to have introduced pineapple to this cocktail.
In his 1923 Harry of Ciros ABC-of-mixing-cocktails, Harry MacElhone also uses pineapple syrup in his East India, which, like the above, is otherwise pretty much the same as Harry Johnson's 1882 East India No. 1 - indeed, MacElhone credits the recipe to Johnson.
Harry Craddock's influential 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book stipulates pineapple juice in place of pineapple syrup, and this is repeated in other cocktail books which follow, including William James "Billy" Tarling's 1937 Café Royal Cocktail Book. I've honoured all the above by using both pineapple juice and syrup in my version of an East India.
One serving of East India No.2 contains 164 calories
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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