TUXEDO

The Martini riff that makes a fashion statement

By Lanee Lee

Martinis have certainly seen a comeback. The classic cocktail, or a nod to it, appears on almost every respectable bar menu from New York City to New Delhi. Food & Wine magazine recently published a stunning full-color spread on the best Martinis in the United States, calling it “America’s most iconic cocktail and undeniably the “It” drink of 2022.” So, in the spirit of ‘everything old is new again’ Martini trends, look no further than the Tuxedo.

It first appeared in print in Harry Johnson’s 1900 Bartender’s Manual. It called for equal parts of Old Tom gin (typically a sweeter, less botanical-forward gin) and dry vermouth with a dash of absinthe, Maraschino, and three dashes of orange bitters. It’s garnished with a cherry and squeezed lemon peel on top.

The drink’s origins are credited to the Tuxedo Club, an exclusive private club founded in 1886 in Tuxedo Park, a bedroom community of New York City. And the name ‘tuxedo’ was inspired by the word “tucesto” which translates to “crooked river” from the Lenape language, a local Native American tribe. The club is also credited with the namesake of the tuxedo jacket. Legend has it a guest wore this new black-tie dinner attire—designed by the Prince of Wales’ (Edward VII) very own tailor from Savile Row in London—to the club. Gentlemen members and probably their

Tuxedo Cocktail

INGREDIENTS

1 oz. Old Tom gin

1 oz. dry vermouth

1 tsp. absinthe

1 tsp. Maraschino liqueur

2 dashes orange bitters

PREPARATION wives, too, went wild for the style and commissioned duplicates of the fashion. Subsequently, the short smoking jacket with the tails chopped off became the de rigueur dress code of the Tuxedo Club.

Stir with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Add cherry and lemon peel for garnish.

Like creative tuxedo interpretations modeled on the red carpet by Hollywood’s A-listers, the Tuxedo cocktail also has many variations, such as Tuxedo number one, two, three, and four. Here’s the breakdown:

Tuxedo Cocktail No. 1 - No, this isn’t the original, as you would assume, but a slight twist on the abovementioned ingredients. This recipe first appeared in the legendary barkeep Harry Craddock’s Savoy Cocktail Book in 1930. It’s a blend of dry gin— Old Tom had gone out of fashion at this point—dry vermouth and absinthe. Garnishes remain the same as the OG, but orange bitters or Marshiano are axed.

Tuxedo Cocktail No. 2 - Also making its debut in print in the Savoy Cocktail Book, Tuxedo No. 2 calls for dry gin, and other ingredients remain the same—except there are only two dashes of orange bitters, not three. Ah, semantics.

Tuxedo Cocktail No. 3 - This riff includes a surprise ingredient: a dash of sherry, a Spanish-fortified wine. And Old Tom gin is back, but the gin-vermouth ratios change from equal parts to ¾ gin to ½ vermouth. Also, orange bitters and absinthe get the curtain in No. 3.

Tuxedo Cocktail No. 4 - This version is even heavier on the sherry. It’s mixes two parts dry gin, one part sherry, and a dash of orange bitters. In vintage cocktail books, it goes by the name of Tusseto, perhaps a misspelling of the original indigenous word ‘tucesto’. It first appeared in print in the 1913 Straub’s Manual of Mixed Drinks

Whichever version suits you (pun intended), the Tuxedo is a well-balanced, yet exotic, sipper to shake up your regular gin Martini ritual.