The Rusty Nail. Photo: Drambuie
Drambuie is a Scotch liqueur with a unique combination of aged Scotch whiskies, heather honey, herbs and spices. It makes for a tasty addition to cocktails—it’s also pretty solid on it’s own—and the fine folks at Drambuie have provided a few cocktail recipes below:
The Rusty Nail
1 1/2 oz. Scotch whisky
1/2 oz. Drambuie
1 twist lemon peel
Pour the Scotch and Drambuie over ice in an old-fashioned glass. Stir well, and garnish with a lemon twist.
The Rusty Nail is a classic, and it’s a fairly benign start for the first-timer’s foray into Scotch cocktails. The sweet Drambuie tempers some of the bite of its counterpart.
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The Forty-Five
½ part Drambuie
½ part sweet vermouth
½ part bourbon
dash of vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, add ice and stir until cold. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnish with dried cherry macerated in Maraschino liqueur.
This cocktail was actually quite good, though I preferred mine with a dash of aromatic bitters and no vanilla. Bourbon gives a hint of vanilla on its own, so I thought the concentrated vanilla extract was as bit too much for this drink.
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The Highland Fizz
¾ part Drambuie
¾ part Bacardi Gold Rum
dash of fresh lime juice
dash of Angostura bitters
1½ parts ginger beer
Combine all ingredients in a tall glass and stir. Garnish with a wedge of fresh lime.
I used Don Q Gold Rum in place of Bacardi. Not bad. I’ll probably make this cocktail again with a more flavorful rum, like Barbancourt or Appleton V/X.
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The Chevalier
½ part Drambuie
¾ part Grey Goose Le Citron Vodka
¼ part dry vermouth
dash of fresh lemon juice
¼ part of simple syrup
dash of lemon bitters (optional)
Shake all ingredients with ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.
There’s too much going on in this drink, and I’m not sure Drambuie and flavored vodka should ever go together. Not terrible, but not for me.
