You can’t call something a classic until it’s been kicking around a while. But there’s more to it than that. A classic has a timeless elegance that feels so right, you can’t quite imagine the world without it.
Think Breton stripes, little black dresses, Hemingway’s novels, the Barcelona chair, Frank Sinatra’s velvet vocals and the Manhattan, Old Fashioned or Negroni – the LBDs of the cocktail world.
Here in Vancouver, you might think the cocktail scene is too young to have inspired any classics. You’d be wrong. Here are some of the city’s signature sips.
Vancouver Cocktail (1954)
If the city had a signature cocktail, this would be it: a simply perfect mix of gin, sweet vermouth, Bénédictine and orange bitters. Created in 1954 at the Sylvia Hotel, it disappeared sometime in the 1960s, only to be revived in 2006 by bartender and cocktail historian Steve Da Cruz.
Enjoy it: At top Vancouver cocktail bars.
Recipe:
1 ½ oz (45 mL) London Dry style gin such as Victoria Gin or Long Table Gin
¾ oz (22 mL) sweet vermouth such as Punte e Mes or Odd Society Bittersweet Vermouth
¼ oz (7 mL) or “a good splash” of Benedictine liqueur
2 dashes orange bitters
Place all ingredients in a mixing ice and stir well. Strain into a chilled cocktail (martini) glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon peel. Serves 1.
Hotel Georgia (1945)
A decade earlier, the swish Hotel Georgia already had a namesake tipple, a delicate froth of gin, lemon juice, orgeat, orange blossom water and egg white. But it, too, was lost to time until 2011, when Hawksworth Restaurant’s bar manager, Brad Stanton, discovered its ghost lingering in the hotel archives.
Enjoy it: At Rosewood Hotel Georgia’s bars.
Recipe:
1 ¾ oz (52 mL) Plymouth gin
¾ oz (22 mL) fresh lemon juice
½ oz (15 mL) orgeat (almond syrup)
6 drops orange blossom water
1 egg white
Place all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and “dry shake” (without ice) vigorously until quite frothy. Add ice and shake again until well chilled, then double-strain into a chilled cocktail glass. If you like, garnish with freshly grated nutmeg. Serves 1.
Blue Fig (2004)
When Karri and Nico Schuermans moved from Australia to Vancouver to open Chambar, cocktails were always part of the plan. In 2004, though, Vancouver didn’t have the cocktail scene Sydney did. So they created one, with the help of an Aussie barkeep named David Fesq. His fig-infused gin martini with a side of blue cheese has been on the menu since the beginning. “We have people who come from all over for it,” Karri says.
Enjoy it: At Chambar.
Recipe:
2 oz fig-infused gin
Dash of simple syrup
Blue cheese to taste
Place fig-infused gin and a dash of simple syrup in a mixing glass with ice and stir. Strain into a chilled coupe. Serve with a side of crumbled blue cheese. Serves 1.
Note: To make the fig-infused gin, place 2 to 3 figs, halved and cut side up in a baking dish, drizzle with a bit of meted butter, then bake in a 350°F (180°C) oven for 15 minutes or until very soft. Place baked figs in a large glass jar and cover with 1 bottle (750 mL) gin. Let sit for 48 hours. Strain through cheesecloth into a serving bottle and chill.
Chartreuse Milkshake (2008)
This “crushable, complex and refreshing” blend of gin, Chartreuse, crème de cacao, chocolate bitters, citrus and egg white was created by Lauren Mote, former UVA bar manager and 2015 Diageo World Class Canada champion, back in 2008 at Chow Restaurant. Not only has it appeared in every menu she’s created since, it’s also been picked up by bartenders worldwide.
Enjoy it: At UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar, and bars in Grand Cayman, Munich and Melbourne.
Recipe:
11/2 oz (45 mL) Tanqueray No. TEN Gin
1/2 oz (15 mL) Green Chartreuse
1/2 oz (15 mL) crème de cacao (chocolate liqueur)
3/4 oz (22 mL) orange juice
3/4 oz (22 mL) lime juice
1/4 oz (bar spoon) simple syrup (see note)
2 dashes Bittered Sling Malagasy Chocolate bitters
1 egg white
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail and dry shake (without ice) to emulsify egg white. Add ice to the shaker and shake vigorously for 10 to 15 seconds until well chilled and diluted. Pour into a tall Collins glass over fresh ice and garnish with crushed cacao nibs. Serves 1.
Note: To make simple syrup, bring 1 cup (250 mL) water with 1 cup (250 mL) just to a boil, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and cool.
Port Authority (2011)
Created by the late Derek Vanderheide, bar manager at the Rosewood Hotel Georgia’s 1927 Lobby Lounge, who passed away tragically and suddenly on his 35th birthday. In respect, bartenders all over the city put his elegant chocolate-and-bourbon cocktail on their lists. If you see it, order it to honour a beloved member of the city’s bartending community.
Enjoy it: Anywhere you can find it.
Recipe:
11/2 oz (45 mL) Makers Mark bourbon
¾ oz (22 mL) Quinto De Crusto LBV Port
½ oz (15 mL) crème de cacao or housemade chocolate liqueur
1 barspoon (5 mL) maraschino liqueur
2 dashes Bitter Truth Chocolate Bitters
1 dash Bitter Truth Aromatic Bitters
Place all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Stir well, then strain into a chilled cocktail (martini) glass. If you like, serve with a chocolate garnish. Serves 1.
Horseradish Sour (2012)
Five years ago, Wildebeest restaurant opened, bringing the bone luge and heart tartare into culinary fashion, along with savoury cocktails. Josh Pape’s Horseradish Sour features a crisp tartness balanced with an umami-rich profile that goes exceptionally well with oysters and steak.
Enjoy it: At Wildebeest.
Recipe:
1 tsp (5 mL) creamed horseradish
2 oz (60 mL) Beefeater London Dry Gin
1 oz (30 mL) lemon juice
½ oz (15 mL) honey syrup (1:1; see note)
1 egg white
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail tin and shake vigorously. Fine strain into a chilled cocktail coupe glass. Garnish with finely cracked black pepper. Serves 1.
Note: To make honey syrup, mix equal amounts of honey and hot water together until honey is completely diluted.
Avocado Gimlet (2013)
Who needs avocado toast when you can have this instead? Inspired by a visit to Mexico, L’Abattoir’s former head barman Shaun Layton infused gin with olives and rosemary, mixed it with avocado and created a West Coast classic.
Enjoy it: At L’Abattoir.
Recipe:
11/2 ox (45 mL) olive and rosemary-infused Beefeater Gin (see note)
½ oz (15 mL) Lillet Blanc
1 oz (30 mL) fresh lime juice
¾ oz (22 mL) simple syrup
1/4 fresh avocado, flesh only
Combine all ingredients into a shaker tin and fill with ice. Give it a good, long, hard shake to make sure the avocado blends into the cocktail. Double-strain with a slightly bigger mesh strainer into a large coupe glass. Serves 1.
Note: To infuse the gin, put a few sprigs of rosemary and a handful of green olives into a large glass jar and muddle gently. Pour the gin over top, cover, and place in a cool dark place for 24 hours. Strain out solids and pour the infused gin into a clean glass bottle.
Gerard (2014)
When Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar opened at Sutton Place, then-bar manager Justin Taylor created this scotch-based drink in homage to the hotel’s dark, cosy Gerard bar. Its whiff of smoke and sweet cherry notes “is perfect for sipping while you sit beside the fireplace on a leather couch and reminisce,” Taylor says.
Enjoy it: At Sutton Place Hotel.
Recipe:
11/2 oz (45 mL) Macallan Gold
1/2 oz (15 mL) maraschino liqueur
1/4 oz (7 mL) Fernet Branca
3 dashes Bittered Sling Suius Cherry
Combine all ingredients and stir in a mixing glass with ice for 20 seconds. Strain mixture into an Old Fashioned glass over fresh ice. Garnish with a cherry. Serves 1.
Inception (2016)
A white Negroni is captured inside an ice sphere and served in a regular Negroni; as the ice melts, the cocktails intermingle in an ever-changing dream-within-a-dream of flavours. When Prohibition’s co-head bartender Robyn Gray created his Inception cocktail, it made international headlines and became an instant classic.
Enjoy it: At Prohibition.
Recipe: This one is too complicated to make at home.
So, what’s Vancouver’s next great classic cocktail? One thing we know for sure – we can’t wait to taste it.
