Pepper, who introduced the cocktail to the waldorf astoria hotel in new york city. The pendennis club is a louisville, kentucky institution. The pendennis club is a private social club located at 218 west muhammad ali blvd. Links between the pendennis club and the old fashioned cocktail started in 1931. For the grande bretagne, use 1 12oz gin, 12oz apricot brandy, 12oz lime juice, 1 dash orange bitters, and 1tsp egg white. Its thought to be one of the first social clubs in kentucky, if not the united states. Created in the 1920s at the pegu club, an expat gentlemens club in british colonial rangoon, burma.
This classic is named after the pendennis club in louisville, kentucky, which is said by some to be the birthplace of the oldfashioned. The pendennis club is a traditional gathering of friends, where decency, decorum, civility, good manners and the social graces are still very much in style. Pendennis clubs original oldfashioned whiskey education. The time and era check out, but there does not seem to be any hard evidence that this is the unequivocal birthplace of the old fashioned. By 1930, his savoy cocktail book immortalized many classic cocktail. The pendennis club cocktail reminds me a lot of the lucien gaudin. It is set in 19thcentury england, particularly in london. The main hero is a young english gentleman arthur pendennis, who is born in the country. How to make a classic old fashioned cocktail it dates back to 1881. If dry apricot brandy is intended, then the gin should be old tom for.
Chantal martineau on the first black cocktail book. Arthur pendenniss crest, which was described but not depicted in this novel. A brief history of the old fashioned distillerista. And like the pegu club which was named for the historic english gentlemans club in burma, this one references a similar establishment located in louisville, kentucky. The original pendennis club oldfashioned glass gift box set of 4. As is the case with so many drinks, the origin of the pendennis cocktail is lost to time. But some written references date it back to 1915, so we know the drink is at least. Our membership enjoys formal entertaining in the dining room, a relaxed time in the grill and hosts special events in the grand ballroom or one of our 9 private dining rooms. A spirited history of a classic cureall, with cocktails, recipes, and formulas. The cocktail takes its name from a famous social club in. Shake all ingredients with ice and fine strain into a chilled cocktail glass. So far ill be talking about the century club punch, pendennis club, turf club s, riding club cocktail, st. This definitive version of the oldfashioned cocktail was popularized by club member and master distiller, colonel james e.
The cocktail s road to national prominence first came when it was featured in george kappelers 1895 book, modern american drinks. But at some point toward the end, i snuck away and bellied up to the sparsely populated bar. See the ingredients, how to make it, view instrucitonal videos, and even email or text it to you phone. The recipe for the pendennis club cocktail of then club head bartender martin cuneo was published in the july 1934 edition of esquire magazine. Pendennis club cocktail recipe gin, apricot brandy and. The pendennis club was started in 1881 by 19 local business, professional and political leaders, in a rented space over a grocery store at fourth and walnut the present site of the seelbach hotel. The pendennis club cocktail originates from the exclusive social club of the same name in louisville kentucky. The pendennis club ginapricot cocktail recipe saveur. If a cocktail origin story has too many details, someones trying too hard to win you over.
Also, around this time, a pendennis club member, colonel james pepper, was a regular guest of new york citys original waldorfastoria hotel. The ping pong cocktail is a warhorse classic nearly lost to time. Food and drink our membership enjoys experiences ranging from relaxed time in the grill to formal dining in the main dining room. Muddle with the optional addition of a splash of club soda to the bottom of the glass. The story begin at the pendennis club in louisville. The 3 books every bartender needs to read this month. Welcome to the club pendennis cocktail the pendennis cocktail seems to have been a drink that was hardly known. Wondering if anyone had any references or interesting cocktails to look into.
His fortunes and misfortunes, his friends and his greatest enemy 184850 is a novel by the english author william makepeace thackeray. Its a social club with a long history that is still going strong today. It was traditionally a whitesonly club for gentleman, but has since modernized itself and accepts all races and genders. Founded in 1881, the pendennis club was a private social club based on those prominent in london at the time. Learn about the old fashioned cocktail history, or as some call it, the original cocktail. Some of our favorite titles are the kentucky bourbon cocktail book. It originates in bars, where truth and memory are infrequent patrons. From an encyclopedic cocktail collection to a fresh view of the tikisphere to a historic bartending guide republished a century after its initial printing, these are books to seek out not just in. Pendennis club cocktail the pendennis club cocktail reminds me a lot of the lucien gaudin. So i determined to order an old fashioned at the pendennis bar. Sign up for the distillerista newsletter and receive. Stories that credit the creation of a cocktail to famous persons who. Pegu club drink recipe how to make the perfect pegu club. The original pendennis club oldfashioned glass gift.
Add the sugar cube to your serving glass double or single old fashioned glass and then add the angostura bitters. Moreover, the old fashioned is just the old whiskey cocktail that people had been drinking for decades prior to then, just living under a different name. Named for a social club in louisville, kentucky, the pendennis club cocktail is a surprising combination of floral fruit on a gin base. This classic is named after the pendennis club in louisville, kentucky, which is. But extra nonsense points go to the pendennis club of louisville, who maintain their paternity claim even though they opened their doors in 1881, a full year after it first appeared in print. Unlike the muthaiga country club and the ootacamund club, though, the pegu club. The pendennis club is a gathering of friends, where decency, decorum, civility, good manners and the social graces are still very much in style. Still, in the hazy world of cocktail history, even persistent mythmongers have a place in the pantheon. Pepper, a patriarch of kentucky bourbon whiskey who also kept a successful stable of thoroughbreds. Greg boehm owns the worlds largest collection of cocktail books 3,800 and. Crush a small lump of sugar in a whiskey glass containing a little water.
Unlike other social halls lost to time, the namesake for the pendennis club cocktail is alive and well today. Pendennis cocktail pretty in pink with a delicate froth, this apricotgin cocktail has a mesmerizing balance of floral, citrus, and fruity flavors. A long while back i had two regulars in my bar who enjoyed tasking me with interpreting classic cocktails. The pendennis cocktail vintage spirits and forgotten cocktails. History and origin of the oldfashioned cocktail thrillist. Tom bullock and the forgotten legacy of african american bartenders in the midst of the cocktail renaissance, the forgotten history of americas most influential african american bartenders is finally being revived. Located in louisville, kentucky, the pendennis club has been open since 1881. The word pendennis seems slightly naughty to me, but in addition to the castle, it is also the title of a 19th century novel from which the club got its name. It knows nothing of politics or religion except that its members may or may not be of one persuasion or another. A score of articles appeared in the courierjournal, from october 27, 1927 to december 11, 1928, documenting the construction of the clubs current home, which occurred under the leadership of club president owsley brown. The pendennis is a sweeter version of the grande bretagne cocktail, described in the gentlemans companion vol. Bucking the trend for these cocktail variety, a pendennis club member would simply.
Tom bullock and the forgotten legacy of african american. Despite the burden of colonial history, the club s iconic cocktail is light and restorative. Ky where the drink debuted at the pendennis club before being brought to the waldorfasto. Cecilia society punch, jockey club cocktail, pegu club, royal bermuda yacht club, clover club and the vancouver club cocktail. Its an elite, private dining and social club that was formed in 1881.
In honor of black history month, were spotlighting three recent bar books penned by black authors. The earliest known published source attributing the drinks creation to the club, notably, has no ties to kentucky. Cocktail lore traces the oldfashioned to latenineteenthcentury louisville, specifically the pendennis club, where the drink was purportedly invented by or perhaps in honor of col. Maryland native albert stevens crockett stated in his old waldorf bar days in 1931 that the old fashioned cocktail was said to have been the invention of a bartender at the pendennis club and that this drink was brought to new york citys original waldorfastoria hotel by or in honor of club member and bourbon distiller col. Designed to be one of the finest club buildings in the country and entirely fireproof throughout, the onemillion dollar project commenced in. The pendennis was established in 1881 and is often cited as the birthplace of the old fashioned cocktail. Legend has it that a guest at the bar ordered a cocktail, but warned bartender martin cuneo that he wasnt a fan of bourbon. Designed to be one of the finest club buildings in the country and entirely fireproof throughout, the onemillion dollar project commenced in 1927. A brief history of the cocktail in modern usage, cocktail has become synonymous.
The drink made with dry gin, peychauds bitters, simple syrup, lime juice, and apricot liqueur has a special history of its own. Like all of its ilk, the pegu club had a bar, and like all such bars, this one had its house cocktail. The puzzling pendennis club cocktail investigative bartender toby cecchini on an exquisite pink gin drink and the club in louisville, kentucky, that forgot how to make it. Herein we shall look back to see what has been and what others have said of the pendennis club. Probably the most storied were that this classic cocktail was first made at the pendennis club in louisville, ky. A spirited history of a classic cureall, with cocktails, recipes, and formulas parsons, brad thomas, anderson, ed on. A few years later, in 1895, the cocktail was featured in the book, modern american drinks by george kappeler, cementing its place as a popular drink throughout the usa. The name was borrowed from arthur pendennis, a character in an 1850 thackeray novel described as a paradigm club man. A score of articles appeared in the courierjournal, from october 27, 1927 to december 11, 1928, documenting the construction of the club s current home, which occurred under the leadership of club president owsley brown. A delicious cocktail recipe for the pendennis club cocktail with lime juice, apricot liqueur, peychauds aromatic bitters and old tom gin. Is that classic cocktails origin story actually true.
Dc at the willard hotel and the oldfashioned was first made at louisvilles famed pendennis club, the bourbon cocktail has earned its place in american mixology. Appearances in recipe books are few and far between, and when it did show up, there were variations on the recipe. Since then, it has fallen in and out of favour many times, but as a classic cocktail, its place in history has been cemented. This book contains a recipe for an old fashioned holland gin cocktail. The cocktail appears in the 1923 harry of ciros abc of mixing cocktails.
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