Name: Air Mail
Total time: 3 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 30 ml Light gold rum 1-3yo; 15 ml Lime juice; 15 ml Honey and water syrup; 45 ml Brut sparkling wine

Air Mail
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Photographed in an UB Ginza Tall Cuts Water 8.5oz

Ingredients:
1 oz	Light gold rum (1-3 year old molasses column)
¹⁄₂ oz	Lime juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₂ oz	Honey syrup (3 parts honey to 1 water by weight)
1 ¹⁄₂ oz	Brut champagne/sparkling wine

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

How to make:

Select and pre-chill a Highball (max 10oz/300ml) glass.
Prepare garnish of mint sprig tip or serve naked.
SHAKE first 3 ingredients with ice and strain into an ice-filled glass (preferably a column of ice).
TOP with sparkling wine and briefly stir.
Garnish with tip of a mint sprig or serve naked.

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Brut champagne/sparkling wine - Sulphur Dioxide/Sulphites

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Cocktail of the day:

17th August 2025 is Air Mail's birthday

Review:

Lightly or well-aged rum invigorated with dry champagne, freshened by a touch of lime and balanced by honeyed richness.

Described by some as being a rum-based French 75, like the French 75, there is debate over the correct glass and whether to serve with ice. The truth: the Air Mail is best as it was originally intended, served as a highball in a highball glass (max capacity 10oz / 300ml).

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History:

This is a potent little drink and the name could be a reference to airmail being the quickest way of getting a letter from A to B. It could date back to the early days of airmail which began 15th May 1918 with the world's first scheduled airmail route between New York and Washington D.C.. However, the earliest known reference to the drink is a 1930s promotional pamphlet, Bacardi and Its Many Uses.

The Air Mail (spelled with two words) most notably appears in W.C. Whitfield's 1941 wooden cover bound Here's How accompanied by the note "It ought to make you fly high." Indeed, the 1940s appear to be the Air Mail's heyday with the drink notably also appearing in David Embury's 1948 The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks and Esquire's 1949 Handbook for Hosts.

That Bacardi leaflet calls for Bacardi Gold rum while Whitfield specifies "fine rum" [well-aged blended Caribbean rums work well]. Both recipes stipulate a highball glass [a tall glass smaller than 10oz / 295ml] filled with ice. This is a "short drink served long" and misguided folk who serve it straight-up in a coupe or flute are taking a flight of fancy.

Nutrition:

One serving of Air Mail contains 133 calories

Alcohol content:

0.9 standard drinks
12.18% alc./vol. (12.18° proof)
12.8 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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Showing 7 comments for Air Mail.
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Egg McKenzie

17th August 2024 at 17:38

a real beaut.

Jim Plante

3rd January 2024 at 23:04

Made this with left over Toasting champagne from New Year’s Eve. A most enjoyable cocktail. I have always been a fan of daiquiri rifts!

Calvin Grant

24th October 2023 at 01:15

What a wonderful and refreshing drink. Light, balanced and complex. The lime shines amidst brut's characteristic flavor, and timeless lovely honey; all the lines are filled with notes! I've gotta try this with vinho verde or perhaps a white lambrusco for another take on a superb classic.

Ian Fenton

16th March 2023 at 10:41

Fantastic redemption for a poor sparkling white.

Anonymous

5th June 2021 at 07:11

This recipe is perfect sized it up to two champagne bottles and made the rest in a pitcher. Friends and I had game day and these were perfect.

New favorite forsure, and I love my rum.

John Hinojos

10th April 2021 at 01:15

Made this as a tall cocktail, next time I would do this in a highball glass. Might use a good demerara rum also.

John McTague

28th January 2021 at 23:32

A bit pedantic, but the 'how to make' section should say 'shake first three ingredients' rather than 'all'. I'll try this next time I have a bottle of champagne open.