The legendary Pegu Club in Burma, in which Montgomery Collins – the forefather of Monkey 47 – undoubtedly spent many an enjoyable hour, is shrouded in numerous myths and tales. This was a traditional gentlemen’s club with cast-iron rules: Only high-ranking British military officers and successful businessmen were allowed to enter. The locals, on the other hand, did not stand a chance. (Although, if the legend is true, Monty ...
The difference between a Tom Collins and a Gin Fizz can be summed up using the following simple rule: one is stirred, while the other is shaken. To put it even more simply: The Gin Fizz is a sour topped up with just a splash of soda water, while a lot more soda water is added to the Tom Collins to create a longer drink. And for that special twist, ...
We don’t know for sure if this cocktail can raise the dead, but we can safely say that it will help revive your spirits. Lest you don’t have a copy of Harry Craddock’s The Savoy Cocktail Book (first published in 1930) on hand, we’d like to reveal the perfect mix: 2 cl Monkey 47 2 cl Cointreau 2 cl Cocchi Americano 2 cl lemon juice 1 dash absinthe Combine all ingredients in a shaker o...
It was around 1888 when New Orleans bartender Henry C. Ramos developed his special gin fizz (the Ramos) and made his bar, the Imperial Cabinet Saloon, the toast of the town. The attention was not just due to the cocktail’s unusual combination of ingredients. According to legend, each bartender needed an assistant, whose only job was to vigorously shake the drink – incidentally, one of the most important factors in the cock...
Today we’d like to highlight the Casino Cocktail, an often overlooked classic with the potential to become your new favorite drink. The signature flavor of this cocktail is its mix of bitter and sweet with a touch of sour. Combine 4 cl Monkey 47, 1 cl maraschino liquer, 1 cl lemon juice and a dash of orange bitters in a shaker over ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a lowball glass. And ...
In French, bijou means “jewel” – an appropriate name for this gem of a cocktail. Developed by Harry Johnson, according to legend the ingredients reflect the resplendent colors of three jewels – gin as a diamond, vermouth as a ruby and Chartreuse as an emerald. A true classic, this precious delicacy is one of the oldest cocktails. To make, combine 2 cl Monkey 47 Schwarzwald Dry Gin, 2 cl green Chartreuse, 2 ...
If you think that the Bronx Cocktail is only drunk by tough guys, to the sounds of hip-hop, then think again. The mild-mannered Black Forest monkey also enjoys its sweet and fruity taste. How and where this particular mix originated, however, is the subject of many tales: The most popular theory is that Johnnie Salon created the cocktail in the bar of the Waldorf Astoria. He is thought to have ...
A classic 1:1:1 drink (with equal proportions of all ingredients), the Negroni ranks among the true evergreens of any bar. (By the way, you can find the recipe on our page entitled “Don Camillo and His Monkey”.) The chief attraction of the Sloe Gin Negroni is, of course, our Schwarzwald Sloe Gin, which is distilled in small batches from 47 rare and regional botanicals and macerated with hand-picked sloes. A genuine Monkey 47 – but ju...
The monkey from the Black Forest is not actually a fan of hocus-pocus; he prefers to keep things things clear and simple. Except, of course, when it comes to the legendary Hanky Panky, born around 100 years ago in the bar of the Savoy Hotel in London. Incidentally, it was served by a lady: the one and only Ada Coleman who, legend has it, fixed this drink for the actor and ...
The Martini is a cocktail classic that is usually made with gin and dry, French vermouth. There are numerous theories about the origins of the Martini. In 1997, Anistatia Miller and Jared Brown compiled a list of the top ten supposed inventors in their book entitled "Shaken Not Stirred". Although the history of the Martini dates back to the 19th century, it wasn't until 1880 that vermouth was added to ...
Legend has it that this mystical cocktail originated in London's Ciro's Club at the end of the Roaring Twenties. The elegant version of the White Lady we know today was created by none other than Harry MacElhone, the legendary bartender at Harry's New York Bar in Paris. After months of experimenting, MacElhone presented his creation originally with crème de menthe and called it after the mythical White Lady. As o...
The father of this classic gin drink is Arthur Tarling, a bartender in London's Café Royal, who won first prize in a London cocktail competition in 1933 with his recipe. Light and refreshing, the Red Lion has quite the pedigree thanks to its simple taste, without any fuss, frills or indeed loud roaring, and it still ranks among the classic cocktails today. As early as in 1937, it featured in the "C...
A Collins is a cocktail with a classic sour base but that is fizzed up using soda water. There are numerous tales on the origins of the cocktail name, but the most popular account is about a mischievous character known as Tom Collins, who hung around taverns in the US in the late 19th century. The guests were told that a man called Tom Collins was sitting in another bar ...
If you've ever wondered what monkeys and tomatoes have in common, you'll find the answer in Singapore – from the inventor of the legendary Screaming Tomatoes cocktail and Bar Manager of L'Aiglon, Louis Tan Chuan Ming. The Singaporean Screaming Tomatoes are a masterly reinterpretation of the Bloody Mary, whose screams could be heard as far away as in the Black Forest. In hot pursuit of the cries, the leading monkey breeder an...
Vesper is a cocktail enshrouded in myths that is made of gin, vodka and Kina Lillet. It was invented by the author Ian Fleming in 1953 in his first James Bond book, Casino Royale, for the most famous secret agent, cocktail connoisseur and womaniser of all time. Indeed, it was womanising that gave the Vesper Martini its name. Bond's true love and colleague Vesper Lynd was born on a dark and ...