a food and cocktail blog

Casino Cocktail

The Casino Cocktail is a pre-Prohibition-era gin cocktail. The recipe can be found in the classic The Savoy Cocktail Book, originally published in 1930. It is a light, dry, gin-forward cocktail served with a lovely cherry garnish. One note about the garnish… I have used fresh, pitted Bing cherries when they are in season, but you can also use any preserved cherries. I don’t particularly care for the neon-red Maraschino cherries that you use to top an ice cream sundae, but you can also opt for the high-end Maraschino cherries from Luxardo. At $20 a jar, I’m not sure they are worth it. But, maybe you think it’s worth a splurge. I know people who soak their own cherries in brandy. You can do this with dried cherries if fresh aren’t in season. That seems like a a great alternative to me. Homemade is always best!

The Casino Cocktail

2 oz gin (Plymouth)
2 dashes orange bitters (Fee Brothers)
1/8 oz maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)
1/8 oz fresh lemon juice
a fresh cherry, pitted

Stir all the ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a skewered cherry and serve.

Happy Friday! Cheers!

 

 

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This Post Has 4 Comments

  1. Yum, that will be next on my rotation.

    I need to find a solution to the cocktail cherry problem. I’ve frozen fresh cherries before and that works well, only my freezer manages to give everything freezer burn.

  2. The new book, The Drunken Botanist, suggests this recipe for maraschino cherries:
    Clean and pit fresh cherries (sour, if possible).
    Loosely fill a Mason jar.
    Pour maraschino liqueur, brandy, or bourbon over the cherries to cover.
    Seal jar and refrigerate for up to 4 weeks.

    I haven’t tried yet, but it’s got to be better than the neon ones.

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