I have been thinking about Sidecars a lot lately. Hasn't everyone?
Well, apparently yes, they have. In yesterday's mail, amidst all the Christmas catalogs, there arrived fashion designer Trina Turk's new advertising flyer. Trina is recommending the Sidecar for holiday entertaining. I say, "Sure! Let's! I was just thinking the same thing!"
The Sidecar came up frequently during my research into the Whiskey Sour. The Sidecar is a cousin, or at least it's in the same family — the Family Sour: a liquor base with a balance of sweet and sour.
The Sidecar is a Whiskey Sour relation: the relation with the much more intriguing name. Why a sidecar? What does this cocktail have to do with an extra seat attached to a motorcycle?
Perhaps the answer lies in the beginnings of the drink, which were at the end of World War One. It originated maybe in Paris, maybe in London, maybe on a motorcycle. Who knows?
A bartender needed to make an emergency cocktail while commuting. His only transportation — a motorcycle. Hilarity ensued.
One of the first mentions of the Sidecar is in Robert Vermeire's 1922 Cocktails: How To Mix Them, for those of you keeping score at home. The drink was supposedly invented by legendary bartender MacGarry of London's Buck Club, a true visionary not only of mixology but of the need to have only one name as a celebrity.
Here is the trusted recipe:
The Sidecar:
2 oz. of brandy or cognac
3/4 oz. of Cointreau or triple sec
3/4 oz. of fresh lemon juice
lemon wedge
With the lemon wedge, moisten rim of a coupe glass (it looks like an old-style champagne glass). A martini glass will do just as well. Sprinkle wet rim with superfine sugar. A true bartender will only coat half a glass with sugar to give the customer the option - to sugar or not to sugar.
Place the first three ingredients into a cocktail shaker full of ice. Shake well until a frost forms on the shaker. Strain into glass. Start your engines.
Article comments
1 - Some Like it Vintage.com
Love vintage cocktails! Luckily many of them are updated ie: martini, otherwise they may not be palatable to us modern folk!
2 - Kate
Yes, where would we modern folk be without the Martini. As Myrna Loy said to the bartender, "bring me five martinis, Leo, and line them up right here."
3 - Kate Shea Kennon
Hi! Orange juice might tip the drink off balance. There's orange already in it with the Cointreau. But then again, it might be delicious! Both lemon and orange juice could be just the thing. Thanks for commenting.