Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The big question when preparing an Alaska cocktail is the choice of gin. Though most bars make it with London Dry gin, the earliest known recipe for the drink calls for Old Tom gin, a sweeter form of the spirit that was common in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This is the recipe found in “Drinks,” a 1913 book by the bartender Jacques Straub, and favored by Jim Kearns, an owner of Slowly Shirley, a cocktail bar in Greenwich Village. "The orange bitters adds a nice, dry, citric note to the end, keeping the cocktail from becoming too sweet,” Mr. Kearns said. While Straub’s instructions do not call for a lemon twist, Mr. Kearns added it anyway, because it “complements the orange bitters so nicely. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Jeffrey Morgenthaler, the bar manager of Pépé Le Moko and Clyde Common in Portland, Ore., enjoyed amaretto sours as a young man. As a bartender, he embarked on a project to make a better version of this often-mocked drink, which was typically composed of just amaretto and sour mix. He boosted the alcoholic strength by mixing in nearly a full ounce of overproof bourbon, replaced the sour mix with real lemon juice and added an egg white — a common ingredient in many sour recipes from the past. Given all the alterations, he might have given the cocktail a new name, but decided against that. “There wouldn’t have been any point,” he said. “There’s a big difference between if I took this drink and made it good, and if I invented a new drink with amaretto. The latter wouldn’t have the same gravitas.” Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This recipe from Marshall Minaya of Valerie, a bar in Midtown Manhattan, is classic, adhering to the original’s mixture of gin, lemon juice and honey. The addition of Barr Hill Gin, a spirit from Vermont that is finished with raw honey, adds an extra honeyed note to the cocktail. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Cynar is a low-proof, bittersweet amaro derived from artichokes, among many other ingredients. Italians typically drink it over ice with a slice of orange. But it has found a home in many cocktails thanks to adventurous American mixologists who not only treat it as a supporting player, but also sometimes as the foundation of a drink. Such is the case with the Bitter Giuseppe, a creation of the Chicago bartender Stephen Cole. The cocktail calls for a full two ounces of Cynar. Though audacious in concept, the drink is easy to understand if you think of it as a Cynar manhattan. The lemon juice, lemon twist and extra bitters do much to lighten up the mixture, which is brighter and more buoyant than you might expect. A great aperitivo cocktail. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

More than most cocktails, a properly made brandy crusta requires a little effort. Achieving an even sugar rim on a glass and paring a long lemon twist (known as a horse's neck) may take a few tries before you get it right. This recipe, to be used at the new New Orleans bar Jewel of the South, is not very far removed from the one first printed by the bartender Jerry Thomas in his seminal 1862 cocktail manual. Thomas credited the drink’s inventor, the New Orleans bartender Joseph Santini, who had his own bar named Jewel of the South. The resulting cocktail may look too beautiful to drink. But that’s what iPhones are for. Take a picture and get to drinking. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Sometimes it seems there are as many Caesar recipes as there are Canadians of drinking age. The building blocks are usually the same: vodka, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, lime juice, spices (for the rim of the glass) and clam-tomato juice, be it the standard Mott’s Clamato or one of the newer brands. But every bar and citizen has a special twist, usually in the departments of spices and garnish. This recipe is an adaptation of the one used by the bartender London Richard at his restaurant Sorso, near Calgary, Alberta. For vodka, he prefers Calgary’s own Burwood Vodka. For the spiced rim, the nationally popular mix known as Montreal steak spice plays a part. The garnish is a pickled pineapple and a bacon-wrapped, cream-cheese stuffed pickle. This version is a bit less complicated. But since a Caesar is a form of individual expression, follow your creative urge wherever it takes you. As long as you’ve got the Clamato and a decently complex spiced rim, you’ll end up with a wonderfully

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Jon Santer, the owner of Prizefighter in Emeryville, Calif. created this simple spritz to celebrate the recent arrival of Bruto Americano, an Italian-style bitter aperitivo from St. George Distillery. To keep the drink local, he uses California chardonnay as a mixer. The pleasingly pink drink is well balanced; the easygoing quality of the wine contrasts nicely with the aggressive bite of the Americano. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Aaron Goldfarb, a liquor writer who was raised Jewish, was not introduced to the joys of eggnog until he married a woman who loved Christmas. Making a batch of homemade eggnog became his self-designated duty at their annual Christmas party in Park Slope, Brooklyn. For the spirits, Mr. Goldfarb prefers Maker’s Mark or another bourbon with a heavy wheat content, which lends sweetness. He also cautions against using spiced rum, as he feels the spirits involved already possess enough intrinsic baking-spice qualities. Mr. Goldfarb loves a slightly aged nog; see Tip for his advice.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Nostrana, an Italian restaurant in Portland, Ore., has offered a Negroni of the Month since 2010, all original creations, some of them quite odd (squid ink Negroni, anyone?). But the house Negroni follows classic lines, using equal parts gin, vermouth and Campari. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This simple riff on the old-fashioned has become a popular way to serve Mr. Black cold brew liqueur in many bars across America. Tom Baker, the founder of Mr. Black, prefers a simple recipe calling for equal parts rye whiskey and Mr. Black, with no sugar or bitters required. But each bar has its own take. This formula, which comes from Peppi’s Cellar, a bar in the NoLIta section of Manhattan, opts for Irish whiskey and a few dashes of orange bitters. The Irish whiskey lends a gentle touch to the drink, softening the kick of the coffee. But, really, with this drink, it’s all about what sort of whiskey you like (bourbon also works), and how much you like that cold brew flavor, so adjust the proportions and ingredients to your taste. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The daiquiri is a classic sour — that is, a family of cocktails made with spirit, sugar and citrus juice — whose simple, straightforward appeal has been obscured for years by frozen, fruity variations. One doesn’t need a blender to make one, just fresh limes, good rum and sugar. The proportions of syrup and juice can be adjusted, depending on whether you prefer a sweeter or more-tart style.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This equal-parts drink is not a proper cocktail but a shot, meant to be drunk in one go. If there are any booze bullies that can back mezcal into a corner, it’s the tag team of green and yellow Chartreuse. They dominate here, creating a liquid riot of herbs in a glass, with a background smokiness the only hint that the mezcal’s still hiding in there. The drink is on tap at the Grain and Grape Exchange in Jacksonville, Fla. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Now that a reformulated Dubonnet has been introduced in the United States, a cocktail is in order. The most famous one is this mix of Dubonnet and London dry gin; this recipe is endorsed by Lynn House, a bartender and brand representative for Heaven Hill, the distiller that makes Dubonnet in the United States. She helped reconfigure the American recipe for Dubonnet. This cocktail is a bit stronger than that reportedly preferred by Queen Elizabeth II, who opts for two parts Dubonnet to one part gin. The recipe works equally well on the rocks. Another old cocktail that once went by the same name calls for dry sherry instead of gin. It is also worth a try. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This light-bodied, low-in-alcohol, aperitif-style cocktail from Natasha David shows off the benefits of its collection of disparate ingredients. The Lillet assumes easy, refreshing drinking; the Suze and vermouth lend a slight bitterness and subtle complexity; and the bourbon anchors it all. The marmalade, meanwhile, nods to brunch, and may make you hunger for a bit of food. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Francesco Fanciulli (1853-1915) was given the unenviable task of succeeding John Philip Sousa as the leader of the United States Marine Band. After he refused an officer’s request to play a tune, Mr. Fanciulli was arrested for insubordination. But Fanciulli later had a cocktail named after him. The drink’s origins are murky, but it is clearly in the manhattan family, the chief difference being a touch of the amaro Fernet Branca, perhaps a nod to the musician;'s childhood years in Italy. This recipe is from Philip Greene, a Washington-based cocktail historian. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The Gold Rush was created in the early aughts at Milk & Honey, the famed cocktail speakeasy on the Lower East Side in New York. It came to be when T.J. Siegal, a friend and colleague of Sasha Petraske, the founder of Milk & Honey, came in one night and asked for a whiskey sour. Spying a batch of honey syrup Mr. Petraske had whipped up for a different cocktail, Mr. Siegal asked for his drink to be made with that instead of sugar. The winning result, silkier and richer in flavor than the average whiskey sour, was soon served to customers. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The Grasshopper served at Dante, a New York City cocktail bar, is a fairly straightforward affair, calling on the crème de menthe, crème de cacao and cream demanded by the drink’s classic formula. To this, Dante adds an extra dose of both mint and chocolate flavor. The mint comes in the form of Branca Menta, the minty cousin to the Italian amaro Fernet Branca. Meanwhile, a slight shower of shaved chocolate on the drink’s surface crowns the cocktail. Be sure the crème de menthe brand you end up using is of the green variety, and not the clear. The color of the cocktail, said Linden Pride, an owner of Dante, is “part of its success story; it catches people’s attention.” Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This austere cocktail, as elegant and proper as the hotel it’s named after, has long been associated with the Wilmington, Del., landmark, which still stands. This version of the drink is served at Le Cavalier at the Green Room, the hotel’s new restaurant, which recently opened. It was devised by Tyler Akin, a Wilmington native and Philadelphia chef who is running the kitchen and is a partner in the restaurant. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This popular Michigan drink, which is thick and creamy and tastes like coffee ice cream, is credited to bartender Jerome Adams, who invented it one night in 1968 at the Bayview Yacht Club in Detroit. The drink caught on with the local sailing set and over time spread inland. Mr. Adams, who died in 2018, went on to bartend at the club for more than 50 years, making countless hummers along the way. Brian Bartels, the author of “The United States of Cocktails,” has modified the recipe ever so slightly, topping his hummer with a cherry. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Natasha David has served a wide variety of spritzes at her Lower East Side bar, Nitecap, since it opened in 2014. Some she delivered in the fashion of a standard cocktail — that is, chilled but iceless. Despite its name, that is the case with this bright and sparkling take on the classic daiquiri. Fragrant crème de menthe and the light flavor of the muddled cucumber give the drink an additional garden freshness. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Larry Rice’s Louisville bar, the Silver Dollar, is all about whiskey. So its version of the Moscow Mule is bourbon based. Nothing complicated here, just good Kentucky whiskey subbed for the usual vodka. Ginger syrup is used instead of ginger beer, pushing the drink very close to whiskey sour territory, albeit one served under a mound of crushed ice. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The bartender Joaquín Simó created this funky rum twist on the classic Negroni formula while working at Death & Co, a popular New York cocktail bar. According to Mr. Simó, Carpano Antica vermouth possesses enough strength of flavor to stand up to the powerful Smith & Cross, an overproof, pot-stilled Jamaican rum. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Austin Hartman of Montana’s Trail House in Bushwick, Brooklyn, sticks pretty close to the wine-bitters-bubbles template of the classic spritz with this simple drink. His main break with tradition is his use of the fiery agave spirit mezcal as a base. Wanting the liquor to play well with the other ingredients, he opts for the sweeter, softer Crema de Mezcal, from Del Maguey. “It still has some of the smoky, spice qualities of mezcal, but some of the sweetness that works well with the bitterness of the Aperol,” he said. At first, the mezcal delivers a bracing, spirited hit you don’t expect from a spritz. But after a few sips, it all calms down into an easygoing, refreshing whole. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Edna Scott, the owner of Edna’s Club & Restaurant in Oklahoma City, came up with the lunchbox by accident while trying to make another drink, probably a boilermaker, according to her daughter Tammy Lucas. For such a low-brow cocktail, the instructions are very specific. The beer must be Coors Light, not another light beer. And the glassware must be ice cold. As for the orange juice, no need to squeeze it fresh. Store-bought juice is fine. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Daniel Osborne, the bar manager at Abigail Hall in Portland, Ore., can satisfy orders for gin and vodka martinis and rye and bourbon manhattans in an instant. Each drink is mixed in bulk, diluted and chilled well ahead of time. Advocates of this process say it results in not only quicker service but also a better, colder and more viscous drink. “Dilution and chill are main ingredients” in a martini, Mr. Osborne said. To find out for yourself, you need to plan only a day before cocktail hour. This recipe will yield two drinks. If you wish to have more ready in advance, simply double or triple the measurements. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

There are some who adhere to dry-martini dogma when making a manhattan, thinking the drink improves with less vermouth. But the classic, best and most flavorful ratio for this drink remains two to one. Whether you use bourbon or rye is entirely a matter of taste. Bourbon will get you a slightly sweeter, more mellow drink; rye a drier, spicier one. Both versions can be excellent. Use homemade cocktail cherries if possible, or a quality brand like Luxardo. Eschew the common neon-red orbs found in supermarkets. They are cherries the way that stuff movies theaters put on popcorn is butter.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The martini is the undisputed king of cocktails, nearly a category unto itself. The frosty, austere, all-alcohol icon has bewitched palates and imaginations for more than a century, to a measure no other drink can even approach. The trend toward drier martinis, with only trace amounts of vermouth, began after World War II. (In martini vernacular, “dry” means less vermouth, “wet” means more.) That style remains popular. But, thank goodness, in recent years crusading bartenders have brought proportions back close to historical, wetter dimensions. A martini isn’t a martini without the herbal tang of vermouth; a 3 to 1 ratio of gin to vermouth should satisfy both tastes, given that the vermouth is of good quality and fresh.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Charles Cerankosky, a Rochester bar owner, has fielded plenty of creative orders in his day. One of the most unusual requests was to use mezcal instead of gin in a Corpse Reviver, a sour that dates back a century. This twist is not a natural fit, so Mr. Cerankosky replaced the usual lemon juice with a mix of lime and grapefruit juice to better complement the mezcal. With all that’s going on in this drink, the mezcal almost gets lost, if that’s possible. Still, its smokiness lingers in the back, and the panoply of flavors is intriguing enough to lure you back for another sip.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Americans have been ordering classic cocktails with mezcal instead of the typical spirits. One of the most popular is the mezcal Negroni, in which the gin is replaced with the smoky agave spirit. The switch works well because mezcal is as assertive in its flavors as gin is, and can stand up to flavorful tough customers like sweet vermouth and Campari. A number of different mezcals work well in this mix; Del Maguey’s Vida brand is a good place to start in your experimenting.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This drink, served at Whisler’s, a bar in Austin, Tex., is a classic Moscow Mule with a Spanish twist, using brandy de Jerez and sherry, as well as ginger liqueur, lemon and ginger beer. Brett Esler urges the use of drier styles of ginger beer, sherry and brandy for the cocktail. For presentation, the traditional copper mug will work, but Mr. Esler says a Tom Collins glass will do as well. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The chef Stephanie Izard created this drink as the June 2014 Negroni of the Month for the restaurant Nostrana, in Portland, Ore. The name is a reference to the Chicago restaurant Girl & the Goat, where Ms. Izard is the executive chef. The substitution of Aperol for Campari makes for a gentler drink, while the addition of Averna, a Sicilian amaro, lends a sturdy bottom note. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This apple-centric twist on the Negroni comes from the bartender Jacques Bezuidenhout. He created it for the opening gala of the Manhattan Cocktail Classic, a bygone cocktail convention, and thus had the Big Apple on his mind. Wanting the drink to speak its native language, Mr. Bezuidenhout gave it the Italian word for apple. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The espresso martini, made with vodka, coffee liqueur and fresh coffee, has became a global sensation since it was invented in the 1980s by British bartender Dick Bradsell. At the NoMad Bar in Manhattan, it is one of the most popular cocktails on the menu. But Nathan McCarley-O’Neill, the bar director, has put his own stamp on the recipe, including cold brew liqueur, cold brew concentrate and a touch of aquavit. “By using a concentrate, we reduced the amount of water and dilution being added to the cocktail,” he said. “This meant that the espresso martini had a distinct freshness to it.” For the NoMad drink, Mr. McCarley-O’Neill makes his own concentrate, but for home bartender purposes, a high-quality purchased brand like Stumptown can be substituted. The drops of saline solution — a common trick that cocktail bartenders have been employing for more than a decade — serve to bring out the drink’s innate flavors. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The old-fashioned is one of the oldest mixed drinks in the cocktail canon. (Original name: whiskey cocktail, which became old-fashioned whiskey cocktail, and then just old-fashioned.) It is a stirred drink, usually built in the glass in which it is served. Both rye and bourbon are suitable base spirits. For the sweetener, purists muddle up a sugar cube with water and a couple dashes of bitters, but simple syrup works as well. Twists can be orange, lemon or both (known as “rabbit ears”). A fruited version of the drink came into vogue after Prohibition and involves the muddling of a cherry and orange slice along with the sugar. That version remains widespread, but we advocate the more elemental rendition that took hold in the late 1800s, one that allows the flavors of the whiskey to shine.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This twist on the Last Word substitutes Irish whiskey for the traditional gin, and uses a pineapple syrup (simply a mix of pineapple juice and sugar) in place of maraschino liqueur. The Chartreuse, despite being the smallest component in the mix, still asserts its herbal self, as Chartreuse tends to. Equally boozy, fruity and vegetal, the cocktail tastes like a whiskey sour that went to a Friday night garden party and decided to let loose a little. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The drink, invented by the New York bartender Sam Ross, who created the classic modern cocktail the penicillin, has slowly been gaining steam since it was introduced in 2007, showing up on cocktail menus in numerous time zones. It is a rich, immediately likable whiskey sour lent plenty of culinary complexity by the amaro and the Aperol. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Frank Caiafa’s modified Martinez has been a staple for years on the cocktail menu of the Peacock Alley bar in the Waldorf Astoria. The pre-Prohibition drink’s flavor is rendered more complex by his using both sweet and dry vermouth (making this a “perfect” Martinez), as well as the addition of orange bitters. At the Waldorf, Mr. Caiafa barrel-ages his own gin. But for the home bartender, the Ransom or Greenhook commercial brands will do nicely. Like many of the drinks on the Peacock Alley list, it’s an elegantly modernized version of a classic. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

In 1995, Joe McGuirk was tending bar at Chez Henri, a bistro in Cambridge, Mass., with an executive chef of Cuban descent. Mr. McGuirk was asked to come up with a menu of Latin-flavored cocktails. He found a rum drink called the periodista (Spanish for “journalist”) in a liquor company's cocktail book and gave it a whirl. Mr. McGuirk did a little tinkering and delivered a cocktail, under the same name, that called for Myer’s rum, apricot brandy, Rose’s lime juice, triple sec and a bit of sugar. The drink took off and was soon served across the Boston area. Mr. McGuirk continued to work on the recipe. Here is the one he currently uses. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

For the drinks writer Kara Newman, author of the book “Nightcap,” a nightcap can perform many functions, from sending you to sleep to reigniting a conversation to standing in for dessert. The recipe, one of Ms. Newman’s own, turns the manhattan upside-down, with the softer, calming notes of the vermouth taking center stage instead of the sharper, palate-awakening notes of the rye. Ms. Newman said a standard sweet vermouth can be substituted in this recipe in a pinch, but the Cocchi Vermouth di Torino will add elegance and complexity to your last drink of the night. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Yana Volfson, the beverage director at Cosme, created this elegant yet lively drink for that Manhattan restaurant. It draws its ingredients equally from France and Mexico. The fiery mezcal is calmed by the subtly sweet and fruity blanc vermouth. The guanabana nectar (also known as soursop), which has litchi-like characteristics, adds yet another unexpected flavor note to this twist on a margarita. The drink is a perfectly balanced amalgam of the unusual and the familiar. Goya makes a guanabana nectar that can be found in many New York City bodegas. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

When devising a signature drink for the Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, Ky., Adam Seger drew inspiration from the cocktails made with cava and Spanish brandy that he had tasted at a Spanish restaurant. Wishing to create something that would resemble a pre-Prohibition drink, he replaced the brandy with Old Forester, a bourbon with a long heritage in Kentucky, and the cava with Korbel Brut, the sort of sparkling wine that would have been available to a Louisville bartender in the early years of the 20th century. The drink comes across as a mash-up of a manhattan and a Champagne cocktail: refreshing and just peculiar enough to keep you interested. Mr. Seger strongly recommends that all of the ingredients be very cold before being introduced to the glass. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The Tom Collins is perhaps the ultimate highball and one of history’s most enduring cocktails. It was historically made with Old Tom gin, which is sweeter than London dry gin, but the drink works well with both types of the spirit. (Old Tom only recently became available again, thanks to the clamoring of mixologists.) A peculiar methodology is used in mixing up a Tom Collins. Though it contains fresh juice, which usually dictates that the drink must be shaken, it is nonetheless often built in the glass in which it is served. But shaking the drink and then straining it into an ice-filled highball works as well, and arguably leads to a better integrated cocktail.

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

The Tuxedo is a simple affair, made of gin, sherry and orange bitters, that will give any traditional martini a run for its money in dryness. One of the most prominent old cocktail books to feature this recipe was issued by the Waldorf-Astoria hotel bar in 1934. Jarred Roth, beverage director of the Bar Room at the Beekman in New York, gives the drink an added herbal touch by applying a light rinse of absinthe to the glass. To achieve a more traditional Tuxedo flavor profile, simply omit the absinthe. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This version of the Tuxedo cocktail first appeared in a cocktail book in 1900. Essentially a traditional martini that is lent sweet and herbal notes by small amounts of maraschino liqueur and absinthe, it is a gentler, more delicate version of its austere cousin. Jarred Roth, beverage director of the Bar Room at the Beekman in New York, prefers the Brooklyn-made Greenhook gin and the soft French Dolin vermouth. Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

Robert Simonson

Robert Simonson · NYT Cooking

This refreshing drink was created by the bartender Rene Dominguez and popularized in the '00s at the Shady Lady Saloon in Sacramento. It has become so popular in the city that a canned version was released in 2017. Robert Simonson