Growing up in historic Savannah, Georgia, our house served double duty as the home to my mom’s rare book and print business. Called The Printed Page, all those books instilled a love of books of all sorts. Getting into mixology during quarantine, I picked up several cocktail histories – I recommend anything written by David Wondrich – and spent a fair amount of time hunting down historic recipes online. This is one of those recipes from a 1934 booklet by Lairds Distillery of New Jersey, the oldest in America and the recipient of Distillery License No. 1 from the U.S. Treasury in 1780. This drink is named after a defunct New York City restaurant and its namesake cocktail. I’d still love to find some vintage cocktail books…they have to be out there somewhere!
Billy the Oysterman No. 2
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 oz Lairds Applejack
- 1/2 oz Ransom Barrel-Aged Old Tom Gin
- 1/2 oz Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
- 1/4 oz Grenadine
- 1/4 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
Method
- Add all ingredients to shaker.
- Add ice and shake for about 15 seconds.
- Double-strain into a chilled coupe.
- Garnish with expressed lemon.
- Drop in or discard.
Equipment
- Peeler or Knife
- Citrus Press
- Shaker
- Hawthorne Strainer
- Fine Strainer