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23rd August at 15:09
A cocktail lover’s cocktail 🍸
10th August at 10:15
Use the kiss method and don't even bother with the vermouth, make it really simple and it's perfectly fine with a decent London dry and the Dom B - ooh la lahhh
Ruth Harvey’s Avatar Ruth Harvey
25th April at 16:41
A delicious aperitief. I added a thinly peeled lemon peel and 1/6 measure of Grand Marnier for a citrus twist.
Calvin Grant’s Avatar Calvin Grant
22nd March at 02:04
Revisited, made a double and it was TWICE AS GOOD! No, I jokes. It was just twice as much. Still a 5+ masterpiece though.
Simon Sedgley’s Avatar Simon Sedgley
13th February at 03:12
We had this again, this time easing back a bit on the Benedictine. Like Goldilocks, we enjoy our Martinis not too sweet and not too dry.
John Hinojos’ Avatar John Hinojos
9th February at 02:31
Had again since over 3 years. It is still well balanced, but does have a little more sweetness. Love the hints of orange and honey, but would consider increasing the gin to make a drier cocktail.
Leslie’s Avatar Leslie
17th April 2024 at 23:31
Lovely, perfect apperitivo, I added pear bitters which chastened the sweetness of the Benedictine.
Simon Sedgley’s Avatar Simon Sedgley
9th April 2024 at 16:05
A contemplative, monastic Martini.
Great website btw; a real education and very much appreciated.
Simon Sedgley’s Avatar Simon Sedgley
9th April 2024 at 16:12
James Bond meets Saint Benedict. Now that would be an interesting conversation.
John CARR’s Avatar John CARR
20th March 2024 at 11:41
Second try with 45ml gin, 20 Benedictine, 30 vermouth. Drier and boozier. Bene still perfectly evident.
Peter McCarthy’s Avatar Peter McCarthy
18th March 2024 at 22:16
Smooth. The Benedictine & vermouth really soften the gin, without completely hiding it. Just made this with Beefeater and Dolin Dry. Mild gin up front, with sweet/honey/herbal notes on the backend. Nice option for a simple, gin-based aperitif/aperitivo.
Calvin Grant’s Avatar Calvin Grant
22nd March at 02:08
Same here, Beefeater and Dolin Dry. Supurb!
Arnold Pichler-Ernst’s Avatar Arnold Pichler-Ernst
3rd March 2024 at 15:59
Love it! I'd up the volume a bit though, it's not that much with these volumes.
John CARR’s Avatar John CARR
16th February 2024 at 12:28
I think the choice of gin - and vermouth - will greatly affect the result here. Fascinating little cocktail this one. Recommended.
John CARR’s Avatar John CARR
16th February 2024 at 13:17
On the sweet side for me so would consider bumping up the gin a notch or two next time.
Chris Brislawn’s Avatar Chris Brislawn
9th February 2024 at 04:39
Another recipe that invites tinkering with the proportions. I usually increase the base slightly in such "3 equal parts" recipes (to 1 oz Citadelle Gin de France here). This time, though, I also thought the sweet element deserved to be bumped back up a bit to match the vermouth (Cocchi Extra Dry) rather than just adding sugar, particularly since it adds a nontrivial amount of complexity to the drink. Final proportions were 4:3:3. An herbal treat.
Catherine Wright’s Avatar Catherine Wright
31st December 2023 at 10:07
Am in France and lucky to have a local wine shop who actually knows his liqueurs. Going to try this tonight and he recommended Vermouth Forcalquier - slightly sweeter and more of a honey style.
Catherine Wright’s Avatar Catherine Wright
29th January 2024 at 17:36
It has become a winter favourite but I prefer adding a quarter of lime juice to cut through the sweetness of the benedictine.
21st July 2023 at 19:50
Made with Monkey 47 Gin, it’s very reminiscent of what Americans refer to as “Russian tea.” A light misting of absinthe adds additional interest. Fascinating to try along side the Chrysanthemum cocktail.
Steve Trax’s Avatar Steve Trax
16th May 2023 at 00:45
Doubling the ingredients is twice as good!
19th April 2023 at 12:42
This immediately became my partner's favourite drink (of the ones we make at home, at least!). I am yet to try it with Noilly Prat and Four Pillars, but our first try used Dolin vermouth and Hendricks gin, and we found these to be a fantastic blend (subsequent attempts with other gins or vermouths have been inferior). This is also a great cocktail for demonstrating the value of garnish, as it's noticeably different (and better!) with an expressed lemon peel twist!
Olga María Gómez Henderson’s Avatar Olga María Gómez Henderson
6th April 2023 at 11:43
A really good Bénédictine cocktail.
Fredie Martineau’s Avatar Fredie Martineau
3rd April 2023 at 20:07
This is a nice, tasty cocktail, simple to make.
As the quantity is quite small overall I have doubled the amount of gin which makes the drink still balanced given the Benedictine BOM is quite sweet.
Chris Lamb’s Avatar Chris Lamb
28th March 2023 at 20:22
I also use Noilly Prat, and I have now made this both with and without 5ml of sugar as recommended by another comment. I can recommend this addition if using Noilly Prat. (I also flame my garnish; the lemon really adds something to the nose.)
Ben R’s Avatar Ben R
4th February 2023 at 23:41
This is the cocktail that has brought me the most compliments. It reminds me a bit of tea with honey, which I attribute to the Benedictine combined with the lemon twist. As someone else mentions in the comments, this is a drink where the twist plays an essential role.
Michael Cronin’s Avatar Michael Cronin
25th December 2022 at 17:21
I also used Dolin as it’s what was on hand. I’d back the Benedictine down a bit as it was sweeter than I personally prefer. Express the lemon twist.
J. E. Clapham of Clapham Cocktails’ Avatar J. E. Clapham of Clapham Cocktails
23rd December 2022 at 10:05
This recipe seems to date back to 'Old Waldorf Bar Days' (1931). There's a similar drink - albeit with orange bitters - called the Ford Cocktail in Kappeler's 1895 'Modern American Drinks'.
Simon Difford’s Avatar Simon Difford
23rd December 2022 at 12:14
Thanks, Jason. Not something I spotted. I've added a link between the two cocktails as variations. Old Tom versus London dry.
J W-S’ Avatar J W-S
22nd July 2022 at 20:42
John's Excellent Gin
25th April 2022 at 16:24
A bit sweeter with my ingredients than I was expecting but nice flavour, very fresh. The lemon peel is definitely not just a garnish.
18th April 2022 at 23:46
Having only a bottle of B&B on hand, I bumped the ratio to equal parts hoping to balance things out. The drink was perfectly balanced with a very nice herbal complexity. 9/10
Sam Donaldson’s Avatar Sam Donaldson
21st March 2022 at 23:34
Made with Uncle Val’s botanical gin and found it worked very well with the lemon and Benedictine. As others have said, the lemon is essential. Cheers!
Brandon John’s Avatar Brandon John
23rd February 2022 at 09:44
An excellent use for Benedictine, and a great way to work through that bottle of Vermouth that the usual extra dry Martinis seems to get through.

Definitely needs the extra dilution to cut through the herbaceousness, and can use a touch of simple syrup with something as dry as Noilly Prat.

The end result is a Martini spinoff that's just delightful to look at, smell, and drink.
18th February 2022 at 14:14
The aromas alone are ridiculously good
S BA’s Avatar S BA
4th February 2022 at 22:12
I used a Ferdinands Dry Vermuth and Tanquaray 10 and found it too sweet. I added a dash of supasawa to keep a clear drink. Was quite nice but will not be my favourite.
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