The March of Booze Through Time

[Splificator]

For an upcoming project, I've been assembling a list of New York's signature drinks, decade by decade since the end of the American Revolution. This is, of course, highly subjective--if you went strictly by the numbers, it'd be a very dull list indeed, with most of the entries reading "beer" or "whiskey" or "the Martini." I've tried instead to make it a little more impressionistic, avoiding repitition and attaching drinks to the decades when they hit their peak--i.e., when they were still new enough that everybody wasn't sick of them, yet had been around enough that everybody knew how to make them. I've also tried to pick drinks that were representative of what was going on in drinking culture in general.

Anyway, I thought I'd post the list here for comment, discussion and correction, partly because it's a fun topic and partly because I'm not convinced that I've nailed the latter part of the list--the bits since Prohibition.

Note that, although the list is centered on New York, it also applies pretty well to the rest of urban America (well, maybe not New Orleans, which always had its own thing going on).

New York’s Signature Drinks, by Decade

1790s: Punch (brandy and/or rum, lemon and/or lime juice, sugar, water and nutmeg)

1800s: Sling (gin or brandy, sugar, water and nutmeg)

1810s: Julep (brandy and rum or gin, sugar, water and mint)

1820s: Apple Toddy (brandy or apple-brandy, baked apple, sugar and hot water)

1830s: Gin Cocktail (gin, bitters, sugar and water or ice)

1840s: Sherry Cobbler (sherry, orange slices, sugar and ice)

1850s: Brandy Smash (brandy, sugar, mint and ice)

1860s: Whiskey Sour (whiskey, lemon juice, sugar and ice)

1870s: Gin Fizz (gin, lemon juice, sugar, ice and soda water)

1880s: Manhattan Cocktail (rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, bitters and ice)

1890s: Martini Cocktail (gin, sweet vermouth, bitters and ice)

1900s: Scotch Highball (Scotch whisky, soda water and ice)

1910s: Dry Martini (gin, dry vermouth, orange bitters and ice)

1920s: Old-Fashioned (bootleg whiskey, sugar, bitters, orange, cherry and ice)

1930s: Sidecar (brandy, Cointreau, lemon juice and ice)

1940s: Daiquiri (white rum, lime juice, sugar and ice)

1950s: Ultradry Martini (gin, whisper of dry vermouth and ice)

1960s: Gin and Tonic (gin, tonic water, lime and ice)

1970s: White Wine Spritzer (white wine, soda water and ice)

1980s: Vodka Martini (vodka, whisper of dry vermouth and ice)

1990s: Cosmopolitan (citrus vodka, triple sec, lime juice, cranberry juice and ice)

2000s: Rye Manhattan (rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, bitters and ice)

[slkinsey]

What a fun and interesting topic, Dave!

I think you have the Cosmo nailed as the drink of the 1990s and I like the wine spritzer as the drink of the 1970s. But I do wonder a bit about the other post-1950s era drinks... They're tricky.

Do you think the drink of the 1950s was really an untradry gin martini and not the vodka counterpart? I tend to think of the 50s as the decade that begain the vodka craze, and I also think of the 50s as the era where the highball overtook the "up cocktail" over in popularity. Perhaps a Moscow Mule? For sure, I'd think that the 1960s would have to be some kind of non-gin based highball. That's a tough one, of course, because the 60s were the beginning of the American cocktail's nadir.

[Splificator]

I do wonder a bit about the other post-1950s era drinks...  They're tricky.

Couldn't agree with you more; that's why I posted this--definitely needs kicking around and tweaking.

Do you think the drink of the 1950s was really an untradry gin martini and not the vodka counterpart?  I tend to think of the 50s as the decade that begain the vodka craze, and I also think of the 50s as the era where the highball overtook the "up cocktail" over in popularity.  Perhaps a Moscow Mule?  For sure, I'd think that the 1960s would have to be some kind of non-gin based highball.  That's a tough one, of course, because the 60s were the beginning of the American cocktail's nadir.

AFAIK, vodka didn't surpass gin in sales until the mid-'60s; I'm sure the Man in the Grey Fannel Suit's Martinis were gin, as were, for instance, Cary Grant's in North by Northwest. But as for the '60s, I'm stumped. Maybe the Harvey Wallbanger? The Screwdriver? The Black/White Russian? To be perfectly honest, it should probably be one of those Old-Fashioneds you make by ligtly squeezing an eyedropper full of something mysterious over a sugar cube and forgetting about the bitters, the whiskey, the garnish, the ice or the glass.

[Sneakeater]

That was gonna be my recommedation.

Do you remember that the counterculture, aside from promoting hallucinagens, toward the beginning actually engaged in anti-alcohol rhetoric? This whole acid/pot-good-booze-bad thing? THAT didn't last very long.

[Splificator]

That was gonna be my recommedation.

Do you remember that the counterculture, aside from promoting hallucinagens, toward the beginning actually engaged in anti-alcohol rhetoric?  This whole acid/pot-good-booze-bad thing?  THAT didn't last very long.

←

Yeah, all it ended up doing is replacing good alcohol with bad--burgundy with Boone's Farm, gin with vodka, bourbon with SoCo. Thanks a lot.

[DrinkBoy]

Dave, that is a GREAT list.

I question the Old Fashioned during prohibition.

I also wonder about the lack of Tiki drinks during the 40's/50's.

I could see moving an ultra dry vodka martini to the 60's in place of the Gin & Tonic, and put a Mai Tai for the 50's.

-Robert

[Splificator]

Dave, that is a GREAT list.

I question the Old Fashioned during prohibition.

I also wonder about the lack of Tiki drinks during the 40's/50's.

I could see moving an ultra dry vodka martini to the 60's in place of the Gin & Tonic, and put a Mai Tai for the 50's.

-Robert

←

Thanks; it's a start, anyway. I'm with you about Prohibition; what would you suggest? Bronx? Orange Blossom?

As for the Tiki '40s-'50s, I think for a national list you'd be absolutely correct. But for a New York-centric list, the '50s were all about the "see-through," the "silver bullet," the (your own cliche here). We're talking Madison Avenue. We're talking Segram Building. International style all around. Not that there weren't Tiki bars in NYC (Trader Vic's was in the basement of the Plaza of all places), but my sense is that it was a subsidiary strain in the drinking culture.

You could be right about the ultradry v. M. for the '60s, but then what do we put in the '80s? The Cape Codder?

[eje]

You could be right about the ultradry v. M. for the '60s, but then what do we put in the '80s? The Cape Codder?

←

Slushy Margaritas?

edit- I remembered that the technology for slushy margaritas didn't really exist when I was drinking in the 80s. Those were blended margaritas. Jack Daniels also seems very 80s. I seem to recall many pictures of the bassist from Van Halen clutching a bottle of Jack.

Edited January 6, 2006 by eje (log)

[DrinkBoy]

I'm with you about Prohibition; what would you suggest? Bronx? Orange Blossom?

←

Perhaps the Bacardi Cocktail? It built up a head of steam during this time.

[Heikki]

I'm with you about Prohibition; what would you suggest? Bronx? Orange Blossom?

←

Perhaps the Bacardi Cocktail? It built up a head of steam during this time.

←

In one of the Chandler's books, I think it was "Farewell, My Lovely" but I am not completely sure and do not have the book here, Philip Marlowe had a Bacardi Cocktail. Wikipedia says that book is from 1940 and in any case it was in one the four well known books Wikipedia says Chandler wrote between 1939 and 1943. Maybe this helps to place Bacardi Cocktail to the right decade.

[Dave the Cook]

If you were looking for more of a true cocktail for the '70s, might I suggest the Tequila Sunrise? Maybe things were different in New York City, but out here in the sticks, I served up as many of those as I did Bartles & Jaymeses.

[Mayhaw Man]

If you were looking for more of a true cocktail for the '70s, might I suggest the Tequila Sunrise? Maybe things were different in New York City, but out here in the sticks, I served up as many of those as I did Bartles & Jaymeses.

←

So you're the one that did that to me. I've been looking for you. Can you tell me what happened? My memory is a bit foggy on the details.

Also, in the sticks, at least for the early part of the 80's, I might nominate the Russian Brothers-The White Guy and his darker counterpart, The Black Guy. I made a gillion of those things in New Orleans in the early 80's.

[Dave the Cook]

If you were looking for more of a true cocktail for the '70s, might I suggest the Tequila Sunrise? Maybe things were different in New York City, but out here in the sticks, I served up as many of those as I did Bartles & Jaymeses.

←

So you're the one that did that to me. I've been looking for you. Can you tell me what happened? My memory is a bit foggy on the details.

Also, in the sticks, at least for the early part of the 80's, I might nominate the Russian Brothers-The White Guy and his darker counterpart, The Black Guy. I made a gillion of those things in New Orleans in the early 80's.

←

As a matter of fact, I first encountered the Brothers at Brennan's -- in the early eighties. Consequently, I cannot help you with the seventies. Sorry. But if your tending duties included brunch at Brennan's during the period, it's possible that we're even, in some cosmic sense.

[Splificator]

So, taking all this in, how would something like this strike everybody?

1920s: Orange Blossom (bootleg gin, orange juice)

1930s: Sidecar (brandy, Cointreau, lemon juice and ice)

1940s: Daiquiri (white rum, lime juice, sugar and ice)

1950s: Ultradry Martini (gin, whisper of dry vermouth and ice)

1960s: Vodka Martini (vodka, whisper of dry vermouth and ice)

1970s: White Wine Spritzer (white wine, soda water and ice)

1980s: Margarita (tequila, triple sec, lime juice)

1990s: Cosmopolitan (citrus vodka, triple sec, lime juice, cranberry juice and ice)

2000s: Rye Manhattan (rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, bitters and ice)

I'm inclined to go with the Orange Blossom over the Bacardi Cocktail, if only because I think cheap domestic hooch--bathtub gin--was ultimately more characteristic than smuggled foreign stuff, although there was no shortage of that, either.

As for the '60s, that was the decade that vodka first outsold gin, so we're pretty good there.

I'm still somewhat unsatisfied with the '70s and '80s entries, but maybe that's just a reflection of how I feel about the '70s and '80s in general.

The '70s could go tequila, but I think that it didn't really peak here in NYC until the early '80s, so I put the Margarita in for that decade instead. Besides, I remember drinking tons of them here at the time. But I think the '80s decade could also be well represented by the Vodka Martini--for the "greed is good" crowd--or the Russian brothers or any one of the common shooters.

Getting back to the '70s, I still like the White Wine Spritzer for its health food, anti-booze, fern-bar connotations. Much of that spilled over into the '80s (when did Bartles & Jaymes first begin to spew their evil forth upon the land?), but might as well catch it when it was new.

Annybody wanna argue about the 2000s?

Thanks all,

DW

[Sneakeater]

Definitely Tequila Sunrise for the 70s at least in the suburbs of New York.

[slkinsey]

That's a good list, Dave. I would make one suggestion/amendment. The drink of the 1980s should be a frozen Margarita.

As for the drink of the 2000s, it becomes very difficult. I see cocktail culture in the new century taking two divergent paths right now: One path is what I call the "new old school." This would be the school to which you & I and most of the people we like belong, grounded in the idea of continuing the great tradition that was interrupted by Prohibition and largely ignoring the "three different kinds of spiced rum blended with ice and 5 different kinds of fruit juice" mixing that happened in the 80s and 90s. These tend to be dry, strong drinks based on traditional spirits. But I think there is also the "new new school" path, where the idea seems to be to continue in the direction set in the 80s and 90s, but presumably with better quality. These tend to be sweeter, fruit-flavored drinks based on flavored vodkas and flavored/spiced light rums, etc. A good example of a "new old school" drink might be the Little Italy from Pegu Club (Rittenhouse bonded rye, Cynar, M&R Sweet) and a good example of a "new new school" drink might be the Wet Water Martini from Cherry (Beefeater Wet, Chambord, Power-C Vitamin Water).

[slkinsey]

(when did Bartles & Jaymes first begin to spew their evil forth upon the land?)

It was later than you'd think, actually. . . 1985.

[Sneakeater]

That's a good list, Dave.  I would make one suggestion/amendment.  The drink of the 1980s should be a frozen Margarita.

←

Big major DITTO to that.

[Splificator]

I see cocktail culture in the new century taking two divergent paths right now:  One path is what I call the "new old school."  This would be the school to which you & I and most of the people we like belong, grounded in the idea of continuing the great tradition that was interrupted by Prohibition and largely ignoring the "three different kinds of spiced rum blended with ice and 5 different kinds of fruit juice" mixing that happened in the 80s and 90s.  These tend to be dry, strong drinks based on traditional spirits.  But I think there is also the "new new school" path, where the idea seems to be to continue in the direction set in the 80s and 90s, but presumably with better quality.  These tend to be sweeter, fruit-flavored drinks based on flavored vodkas and flavored/spiced light rums, etc. 

That's funny--that's pretty much exactly how I've been breaking things down for the last couple of years when I get the dreaded question "what are the current trends in cocktails." Great minds think alike, or at least normal minds pickled in the same great booze. The Traditional School and the Vodka School, I call 'em. I chose to emphasize the traditional school, but a case could definitely be made for the other. Funny thing, though, is I see the two coming together--traditionalists doing more infusions (a Vodka School thing, since if you want flavor in your vodka you've got to put it there yourself), playing with more fruits, etc, and Vodkies dipping their toes in the darker spirits. This, I think, is a good thing.

[lostmyshape]

interesting list... things sort of take a dip in the latter 20th, huh?'

sam and dave: i think this idea about 2 trends in the 00's is very interesting and much more on the money that what was discussed in that trends for 2006 thread (where i ranted about how old-school wasn't really coming back in non-cocktail centers like my hometown of pittsburgh). "vodka school" seems to be king here, although these drinks are getting drier, with more emphasis on flavoring liqueurs that aren't necessarily sweet.

i'm hoping that the rye manhatten finally finds its way here, too, and becomes the drink of the 00's, but maybe it's too early to tell.

noah

[Sneakeater]

Shit, I find that it isn't even that easy to get a Rye Manhattan in Manhattan.

[lostmyshape]

hmmm... maybe you guys are jumping the gun! if we all work together maybe we can make the rye manhatten the drink of the 2010's!

edited for 1 too many smilies.

Edited January 10, 2006 by lostmyshape (log)

[slkinsey]

Shit, I find that it isn't even that easy to get a Rye Manhattan in Manhattan.

Indeed, this is sadly true. . . I recently stopped into Henry's, a local restaurant-with-bar in my UWS neighborhood, for a quick drink after a concert. Since I didn't want to go around the tree about whether they used fresh citrus juices and all that (I had been thinking of a 10 Cane daiquiri) I opted for a Manhattan, which I figured wasn't too hard to screw up so long as the bartender listened to the way I wanted it made. First I asked if they had any rye, upon which the bartender rattled off a list of Canadian whiskies. Then I said I meant straight rye whiskey, whereupon he said that they didn't have any. Then, looking at the back bar, I see a bottle of Old Overholt. So, I got my rye Manhattan, but it's still ironic that the bartender didn't even seem to know what straight rye whiskey was, nor that he had a bottle of it.

[lostmyshape]

i've been looking around pittsburgh, out of curiousity, for how many bars here even have straight rye whiskey. i'm about 1 for 8 right now and all they had was old overholt. not bad, but i've really been wanting to try that michners without having to buy a whole bottle.

[Sneakeater]

Shit, I find that it isn't even that easy to get a Rye Manhattan in Manhattan.

Indeed, this is sadly true. . . I recently stopped into Henry's, a local restaurant-with-bar in my UWS neighborhood, for a quick drink after a concert. Since I didn't want to go around the tree about whether they used fresh citrus juices and all that (I had been thinking of a 10 Cane daiquiri) I opted for a Manhattan, which I figured wasn't too hard to screw up so long as the bartender listened to the way I wanted it made. First I asked if they had any rye, upon which the bartender rattled off a list of Canadian whiskies. Then I said I meant straight rye whiskey, whereupon he said that they didn't have any. Then, looking at the back bar, I see a bottle of Old Overholt. So, I got my rye Manhattan, but it's still ironic that the bartender didn't even seem to know what straight rye whiskey was, nor that he had a bottle of it.

←

Once at the bar at Blue Hill NYC, I asked for a Manhattan made with rye. There was no rye behind the bar. The bartender had to send someone down to the basement to rattle through their backstock, where he came up with a dusty bottle of Van Winkle. It was actually very nice that the bartender went to so much trouble to comply with an unknown customer's request.