Classy drinks from Babylon, the movie

This year (and maybe even longer because I absolutely love it…) Double Strainger will focus on the ‘roaring 20s’. I will spotlight and create prohibition and speakeasy-style drinks and think about how drinks were mixed and served in that specific period in time. 

I’m incredibly thankful that I had the opportunity to work with Paramount Pictures for the Belgian release of their new movie “Babylon”, starring Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie.
More info on the movie is below the recipes. 

In this post and the linked socials, I’m spotlighting three iconic classic cocktails starring in this film. I had lots of fun mixing and sipping them. I hope you’ll enjoy them too. Make sure you don’t miss the fun reel on Instagram, where you’ll see me in action, shaking these beauties. 

From the official list of cocktails linked to this movie, I selected three drinks that really represent this era of class and taste: The Classic Martini, The Corpse Reviver and The Orange Blossom.

The Classic Martini is THE iconic drink of this period. The origin of the recipe is a bit unclear, as is the case for most cocktails. This drink was probably served first to John B. Rockefeller in 1911, by a bartender at the Knickerbocker hotel. It’s questionable because Jerry Thomas already mixed Sloe Gin with vermouth and bitters around the 1880s. 

The classic Martini is also one of the favourite base recipes for bartenders to experiment on. It was the original base from which many other modern classics have been developed, like e.g. The Espresso Martini, The Breakfast Martini, The Cosmopolitan, … even the Manhattan and Rob Roy are very similar recipes. 

The gin-based Corpse Reviver (also known as the Corpse Reviver II) is one of the better-known cocktails published in the Savoy Cocktail book, one of the classic references for mixed drinks. 

The Orange Blossom, at last, was one of the more trendy party drinks during the roaring 20s. Good quality spirits were hard to find and bartenders often mixed questionable spirits with juices and fortified wines to hide the poor taste of the badly produced spirits. 

The Classic Martini

Ingredients
60 ml Dry Gin
30 ml Dry Vermouth
1 dash of orange bitters

Method
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir well to chill and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Twist a piece of lemon peel as a garnish or toss in an olive on a spear. 

About next week... Babylon The Movie

About next week… 
At the start of this year, I already announced that Double Strainger would now focus on the “roaring 20s”, with speakeasy and prohibition-style drinks.

Guess what???

Next Wednesday (January 18) a new Paramount movie is hitting the big white screens in Belgium. From Damien Chazelle, BABYLON is an original epic set in 1920s Los Angeles led by Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and Diego Calva, with an ensemble cast including Jovan Adepo, Li Jun Li and Jean Smart. A tale of outsized ambition and outrageous excess, it traces the rise and fall of multiple characters during an era of unbridled decadence and depravity in early Hollywood.

The story fits my blog like a silk white glove, holding a delicate coupe of expensive Champagne. So yes, I’m extremely happy to announce that next week I’ll be working with Paramount Pictures to showcase some of the delicious and classy drinks that appear in this movie. Keep an eye on our blog and socials… you really don’t want to miss this.

Kamikaze

 

If you really like cocktails, I bet you might also have seen the movie ‘Cocktail’ (1988) with Tom Cruise and Bryan Brown. Halfway through the movie, they are bartending in the very posh ‘Cell Block’ club when Brian Flanagan (played by Tom Cruise) jumps on top of the bar to recite the “Last Barman” poem : 

“I am the last barman poet
I see America drinking the fabulous cocktails I make
Americans getting stinky on something I stir or shake
The sex on the beach
The schnapps made from peach
The velvet hammer
The Alabama slammer
I make things with juice and froth
The pink squirrel
The three-toed sloth
I make drinks so sweet and snazzy
The iced tea
The kamikaze
The orgasm
The death spasm
The Singapore sling
The dingaling
America you've just been devoted to every flavour I’ve got
But if you want to get loaded
Why don't you just order a shot?”

I thought it would be a good idea to reshake one of the cocktails mentioned in this poem. I chose a vodka-based cocktail which I could describe as the macho version of a Cosmopolitan. Just take away the pink cranberry juice from the Cosmo and if needed, balance the sour of the lime with a bit of sugar. The official recipe is an even-parts cocktail with vodka, Triple Sec and lime juice. I’m going to do it just a little bit different.

Kamikaze

Ingredients
4,5 cl Vodka
2,5 cl Triple Sec or Cointreau
2,5 cl Fresh Lime juice
Optional : ½ bs sugarsyrup

Method
Add everything to a shaker with lots of ice. Shake during 20 to 30 seconds.
Double Strain in a Martini-glass or a fancy wineglass. Add a dried lime slice. 

Disclaimer : All pictures and texts are copyrighted by Geert Conard and Esito Management & Communications unless stated otherwise in the article. While some items might have been gifted by the producer or distributor, these are in no way paid promotions or recommendations.