Name: Rattlesnake
Total time: 4 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 52.5 ml Rye whiskey 50% abv; 22.5 ml Lemon juice; 15 ml Sugar syrup (2:1); 3 dash Absinthe; 15 ml Egg white (pasteurised)

Rattlesnake
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Photographed in a Retro Coupe Engraved 7.75oz

Ingredients:
1 ³⁄₄ oz	Straight rye whiskey (100 proof /50% alc./vol.)
³⁄₄ oz	Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₂ oz	Monin Pure Cane Syrup (65.0°brix, equivalent to 2:1 rich syrup)
3 dash	La Fée Parisienne absinthe
¹⁄₂ oz	Egg white (pasteurised) or 3 dashes Fee Brothers Fee Foam cocktail foamer or Aquafaba or Vegan egg white alternative

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

How to make:

Select and pre-chill a Coupe glass.
Prepare garnish of lemon zest twist and aromatic bitters.
SHAKE all ingredients with ice and strain back into shaker.
DRY SHAKE (without ice).
FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.
Express lemon zest twist over the cocktail and discard.
Garnish with dashes of bitters pulled though the foam to resemble a snake.

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Egg white (pasteurised) - Eggs

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

Spicy rye whiskey with a hint of absinthe smoothed by thick meringue-like lemony egg white.

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History:

The Rattlesnake first appeared as a recipe for six people in Harry Craddock's 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book with the notation, "So-called because it will either cure Rattlesnake bite, or kill Rattlesnakes, or make you see them." Our recipe, and the drink's newfound popularity, are influenced by a modern-day adaption by Will Elliott at Maison Premiere in Brooklyn, New York City, USA.

RATTLE-SNAKE COCKTAIL.*
(6 people)
4 Glasses Rye Whisky.
The Whites of 2 Eggs.
1 Glass Sweetened Lemon Juice.
1 Few Dashes Absinthe.
Shake very thoroughly and serve by straining it through a fine sieve.
* So called because it will either cure Rattlesnake bite, or kill Rattlesnakes, or make you see them.
Harry Craddock, 1930

Nutrition:

One serving of Rattlesnake contains 181 calories

Alcohol content:

1.4 standard drinks
18.7% alc./vol. (18.7° proof)
19.8 grams of pure alcohol

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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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Avery Garnett

19th March 2024 at 18:12

it's a rye whiskey sour with a teeny bite of absinthe, what's not to love? Hall of Fame 56/291

Michael Cronin

17th June 2023 at 20:02

I need to work on the snake at the end. I took John's lead and added a couple of sprays of absinthe; it gave it a nose that the listed recipe lacked.

John Hinojos

16th June 2023 at 00:36

Outstanding. Perfect warm day cocktail before dinner. Taste of pepper, herbs, and citrus all blend well to create a uniform burst of flavour. Being big absinthe drinkers, we added a few sprays of additional absinthe on the top. On my favourites. Love these classic cocktails.

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