Aquavit and French

There are a few variations of the Dry Martini recipe remixed with aquavit. Here I’ve decided to follow the Martini proportions from the 1906 version by Charlie Mahoney that appears in David Wondrich’s Imbibe! So far, this is my favorite classic cocktail with aquavit. The spirit really shines, and the drink seems more assertive than the gin version. I have to say that for this particular ratio of spirit to vermouth, I actually like aquavit better than the original.



Aquavit and French

• 1 1/2 oz aquavit (Aalborg)
• 1 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• 1 dash orange bitters (Angostura Orange)

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Lemon twist.
SOURCE: BASED ON CHARLIE MAHONEY’S “MAHONEY COCKTAIL,” DAVID WONDRICH, IMBIBE!

The gin one calls for an orange twist. I had a lemon. The drink’s a bit small for the glass in the photo but it was the best one I had to capture the turn-of-the-century feel of this.