Just for fun, I thought I’d share some period appropriate Cocktails/Mocktails for those of you looking for something special to indulge in during the THIS SIDE OF MURDER Online Release Party, or while kicking back to read the book. Enjoy! But as always, please drink responsibility.

COCKTAIL 1: HANKY PANKY

Talk about a great name. This one was invented by Ada “Coley” Coleman, one of the few women known to have tended bar in the pre-American-Prohibition Era, though she did it at the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel in London.

Ingredients:

1 ½ ounces gin

1 ½ ounces sweet vermouth

2 dashes Fernet Branca

Orange twist

Directions:

Combine ingredients in a mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir well for 20 seconds and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Twist a piece of orange peel over the drink and use as garnish.

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2009/04/cocktail-recipe-hanky-panky-gin-fernet-branca.html

COCKTAIL 2: GRASSHOPPER

A creamy, green cocktail invented in 1919, and recently making a comeback.

Ingredients:

1 ounce white crème de cacao

1 ounce green crème de menthe

1 ounce heavy cream

Ice

Directions:

In a cocktail shaker, combine the crème de cacao, crème de menthe and cream. Fill the shaker with ice and shake well. Strain into a chilled coupe.

https://www.foodandwine.com/blogs/7-brilliant-forgotten-american-cocktails-drink-right-now

Lest you think I forgot those of you who don’t imbibe…

GRASSHOPPER ICE CREAM DRINK

Ingredients

1.75 quarts vanilla ice cream, softened

8 ounce tub Cool Whip, thawed

3/4 cup Creme de Menthe (green)

3/4 cup Creme de Cacao (white)

Whipped cream and Andes mints for garnish, optional

Instructions:

In a large bowl, combine ice cream, Cool Whip, Creme de Menthe and Creme de Cacao. Whisk until smooth. Transfer to a container (such as an empty ice cream bucket) and freeze overnight. Thaw around 30 minutes before serving. Serve with whipped cream and Andes mints.

https://bitzngiggles.com/grasshopper-ice-cream-drink/   

For all you Gatsby enthusiasts…

COCKTAIL 3: GIN RICKEY

It was created in Shoemaker’s, a Washington DC bar, during a brutal heat wave in the 1890s. Described as refreshingly bubbly and pleasantly bitter, it was especially popular during the summer and the Gilded Age. It’s also the only cocktail mentioned by name in The Great Gatsby.

Ingredients:

Half a well-washed lime

2 ounces London dry gin

Chilled club soda

Optional: splash simple syrup

Directions:

Fill a 10-ounce Collins glass with ice. Squeeze lime into the glass, getting as much juice out of it as you can. Toss in the lime shell, then add gin. Top off glass with club soda. The rickey doesn't need it, but if you like a sweeter drink, add a splash of simple syrup.

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2007/07/cocktails.html  

AND one more non-alcoholic choice…

GINGER MICKEY MOCKTAIL

Ingredients:

1 oz lime juice

1 oz simple syrup

1/tsp grated ginger 

club soda

Directions:

Combine first 3 ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake vigorously. Strain into small cup, top with club soda. Serve with bendy straw and lime wedge.