The Last Word

[KatieLoeb]

You're absolutely right, Sam! I hadn't thought of it that way. I surely would never have known about it were it not for the discussions here or visits to Pegu Club and other bars that had it or would make me one.

So what's the next drink to be plucked from obscurity to fame? I've often thought of making something other than a Harvey Wallbanger with Galliano, just to help every bar in America get rid of that tall dusty bottle on the back shelf...

[slkinsey]

That's fascinating -- and as the doofus who was busy judging other places based on that lapse, mea culpa.

Meh. I think it's pretty interesting that the Last Word had grown so far in popularity in only a few years that it was not outlandish to suppose that a place billing itself as a cocktail bar would know the drink.

Something smiliar happened with the Aviation, which wasn't exactly a household word even among cocktailians as of ten years ago, and is now considered a firmly-entrenched classic.

But back to the drink at hand: is anyone else dripping a few drops of Pernod in there now and then?

Ironically, considering that it was my suggestion and I have a dasher bottle of absinthe for just such an application, I've never tried it. Does it add anything?

[Chris Amirault]

Try it and let us know. I haven't quite decided if it's too busy or not, but it's worth a shot.

ETA: I just made one with some very old green Chartreuse and a dash of Pernod. The drink funkier than the usual LW, partly bc of that old Chartreuse but also bc the Maraschino and Pernod get a little squirrelly together. I really like it.

I think that the first post has it right: Aviation, then Trident, then a Last Word. If you're still able to taste anything, try one with Pernod.

Edited August 12, 2008 by chrisamirault (log)

[avant-garde]

One night I was out of Chartreuse but really wanted a Last Word. Instead, I used Strega in place of the Chartreuse and changed the lime juice to lemon. The result is what I like to call the...

Lemoncholy Cocktail

1 oz. Gin

1 oz. Strega

1 oz. Maraschino

1 oz. Lemon Juice

3 drops Fee Brothers Lemon

Lemon Twist

Shake, Strain, Drink

Watch here

[campus five]

A couple months ago, I was at an event sponsored by Plymouth, and they only had Chartreuse VEP. A Last Word with VEP - Now THAT was good.

[Nathan]

yup! they actually sell a VEP Last Word for $12 (!!!!!!) at Bar Milano.

[feste]

The Slanted Door sells it for $10. And ask nice and we'll make you the Shanghai Gin variation- gin, lemon, Benedictine and yellow VEP. Quite frankly, I prefer it to The Last Word.

[birder53]

Is this also an equal parts drink?

[feste]

Yup. And I think Cate over at Pizzaiolo just put it on their drink list. One of my most favorite cocktails!

[birder53]

The Slanted Door sells it for $10.  And ask nice and we'll make you the Shanghai Gin variation- gin, lemon, Benedictine and yellow VEP.  Quite frankly, I prefer it to The Last Word.

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What exactly is the name of this? It is incredible! I don't have and probably never will have the VEP ($110 a bottle!) but it worked quite well with plain old yellow chartreuse. We made it with Tanqueray. I'm still sipping it trying to make it last as we're almost at the bottom of our yellow chartreuse. Thank you, feste.

[eje]

Yup. And I think Cate over at Pizzaiolo just put it on their drink list.  One of my most favorite cocktails!

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All right, all right!

Not Yellow VEP, but even though I was supposed to be recovering from too many old-fashioneds in Wisconsin, I made one of these for myself last night. Indeed, very, very nice. The benedictine and yellow chartreuse are a really cool combination.

[feste]

The Slanted Door sells it for $10.  And ask nice and we'll make you the Shanghai Gin variation- gin, lemon, Benedictine and yellow VEP.  Quite frankly, I prefer it to The Last Word.

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What exactly is the name of this? It is incredible! I don't have and probably never will have the VEP ($110 a bottle!) but it worked quite well with plain old yellow chartreuse. We made it with Tanqueray. I'm still sipping it trying to make it last as we're almost at the bottom of our yellow chartreuse. Thank you, feste.

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So the story goes that one of our bartenders found a recipe called the "Shanghai Gin Fizz" in an old bar book. He said the book was pretty terrible, but he liked the ingredients, so he made the drink but didn't care for the fizz elements added to it. So he made it with just the four ingredients and loved it. Unfortunately there is already a drink (or two) called a Shanghai, so a few bartenders around town have been calling it the Shanghai... Gin.

I'm glad you like it birder! It has been one of my favorite drinks for months. I love yellow Chartreuse!

[TMFIII]

Mixed up a Shanghai Gin last night. Wow! Such a fantastic tipple! Kudos to the Gentleman at The Slanted Door!

Cheers!

[phlip]

Allow me to chime in and I'm sorry to say it but it seems idiotic to me to put VEP in Last Words. Frankly I don't think it has the body to stand up in the drink as well as the normal green. ITs a waste of money and catering to the more expensive is better myth. The notion of which gets my pannies in a ruffle.

On a brighter note have been making Latest Words with the Junipero Genevive, actually on our new list.

[slkinsey]

The Latest Word is brilliant!

I have to say that I agree a bit about using VEP in drinks like this. The ones I've had didn't taste special.

[eje]

Allow me to chime in and I'm sorry to say it but it seems idiotic to me to put VEP in Last Words. Frankly I don't think it has the body to stand up in the drink as well as the normal green. ITs a waste of money and catering to the more expensive is better myth. The notion of which gets my panties in a ruffle.

[...]

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Oh my! Fluffy Ruffles!

I generally agree, but if putting VEP in the drink gets customers to order Last Words instead of some less interesting drink and the costs work out...

[slkinsey]

I wonder what would be a super-expensive Last Word? Something like:

Kensington Reserve XO London Dry Gin

Green Chartreuse VEP

Luxardo Perla Dry Riserva Speciale

Buddha's Hand juice or Kalamansi juice (fresh to-order, of course)

Not saying it would be good!!!

[thirtyoneknots]

I wonder what would be a super-expensive Last Word?  Something like:

Kensington Reserve XO London Dry Gin

Green Chartreuse VEP

Luxardo Perla Dry Riserva Speciale

Buddha's Hand juice or Kalamansi juice (fresh to-order, of course)

Not saying it would be good!!!

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Garnished with a piece of the original Magna Carta, origami-folded into a flower.

[avant-garde]

I wonder what would be a super-expensive Last Word?  Something like:

Kensington Reserve XO London Dry Gin

Green Chartreuse VEP

Luxardo Perla Dry Riserva Speciale

Buddha's Hand juice or Kalamansi juice (fresh to-order, of course)

Not saying it would be good!!!

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I'd sure as hell like to find out.

[jmfangio]

I wonder what would be a super-expensive Last Word?  Something like:

Kensington Reserve XO London Dry Gin

Green Chartreuse VEP

Luxardo Perla Dry Riserva Speciale

Buddha's Hand juice or Kalamansi juice (fresh to-order, of course)

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Well, I have made a Last Word with fresh squeezed yuzu juice, and it was amazing. But, unless you have your own tree, that's an expensive cocktail. When you can find them, they start at about $3 each.

Heading back up the thread a bit, I made a Shanghai Gin tonight, and it's a fantastic drink. In fact, I liked it so much that I made two; the first with gin, the second with Hitachino's 'Kiuchi no Shizuku', and I think I prefer the latter just a little bit.

[bostonapothecary]

the second with Hitachino's 'Kiuchi no Shizuku', and I think I prefer the latter just a little bit.

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i can't wait to try that tonight!

[Nathan]

that version with the Junipero Genevieve at D&C is a very nice drink.

[phlip]

EJE, it is a good bartenders job to get people to drink great drinks and to do so without a "bribe" if you will. I think the point is made tha VEP isn't neccesary by the upper portion of this thread which touched on just how quickly the Last Word or lets say word of spread through out the country. Its a drink that sells itself.

[eje]

Phlip, I'm not sure I agree. Isn't it a bartender's job to do a good job making the drink the customer wants?

The comments in the topic show that Chartreuse's VEP products have a certain amount of Caché.

Is it wrong for a bartender to use every (ethical) tool in his or her kit to sell drinks to customers?

I mean, sure, I can make a mean Sazerac with Rittenhouse Bonded and, probably, a Sazerac made with Rittenhouse 23 isn't going to be significantly better. But if the customer wants a Sazerac made with Rittenhouse 23, and is willing to pay for it, is it the bartender's job to tell him/her, "You know, really, this is a waste of your money."

[slkinsey]

Actually, I think there would be a significant difference between a Rittenhouse BIB and a Rittenhouse 23 Sazerac. Whether one would be better than the other is a matter of taste and opinion.

But the Sazerac is a cocktail that is comprised almost entirely of the base spirit, so it's not a good example. Not so something like the Last Word. I get what you're saying. . . just a bad example drink.

Part of the point I think Phil is making is not only the fact that the special properties of VEP are lost in a cocktail like the last word (it's hard to see how any "special refinement" could possibly hold up alongside an equal measure of Luxardo maraschino), but that a VEP Last Word might even be not as good as a regular Green Chartreuse Last Word.

I would think that a good cocktailian bartender in the appropriate setting might advise a customer asking for a VEP Last Word that the drink really works better with regular Green Chartreuse.

The other thing I think Phil decries (and so do I) is the gimmickry and appeal to price snobbery implicit in the offer of a drink using the most expensive ingredient available, when that spirit doesn't contribute at least a reasonably commensurate improvement or resonably noticable difference in the drink. We're not talking about offering a Margarita made with $1.00/ounce Herradura Silver instead of $0.64/ounce Sauza. We're talking about a Last Word with $3.48 ounce VEP instead of $1.70 regular Green Chartreuse. Just doing some quick math, the VEP alone would raise the cost of the drink something like 50%. I would argue that an upgrade from Sauza to Herradura in a Margarita makes a bigger difference than an upgrade from regular Green to VEP does in a Last Word. I've had a few VEP Last Words for fun, and while I might be able to tell the difference in a side-by-side comparison, it was by no means a "special experience" one would hope for in a $18 cocktail.

Sometimes, however, the upgrade to a superpermium spirit does make a difference and is worth it. PDT's "Staggerac" is a good example. The use of George T. Stagg as the base spirit in a Sazerac abaolutely makes a unique and memorable experience.