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Cocktail History
The Stork Club is a classic gin cocktail that was created during Prohibition and named for the New York City bar of the same name that was “the nightclub of choice” for Hollywood stars from the late 1920s through the mid 1960s. According to historians, the gold chain out front that was lifted for society’s elite as they entered the club is what made it famous.
Cocktail Ingredients
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:
Gin: This is the base spirit. We decided to use Prairie Organic Gin for its smoothness and botanical flavor with notes of citrus and spices.
Triple Sec: This is an orange liqueur. It adds sweet citrus flavors that balance out the other dry ingredients. We went with Cointreau because it’s one of the highest quality triple secs on the market.
Tangerine Juice: This adds sweet and sour citrus flavors. We couldn’t find tangerines when we made this recipe so we used Califia Farms Pure Tangerine Juice.
Lime Juice: This adds sour citrus flavors for balance. We prefer to use fresh citrus juice because it’s less bitter than the bottled stuff and tastes better.
Orange Bitters: This adds a bit of the citrus’s sweet flavor to balance out the other ingredients. We used Scrappy’s Bitters Orange Bitters because they offer the classic taste of bitter oranges, herbs, and spices.
Lime Slice: This the garnish. It adds more fresh citrus aroma and flavor.
Tasting Notes
The Stork Club features aromas of tangerine and other citruses and the botanical taste of the gin mixed with sweet and sour citrus.
Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: The vintage recipe in the book called for too much tangerine juice, in our opinion, which in true Prohibition-era fashion would’ve masked the taste of the gin. We decided to pare it down a bit to bring out the other flavors, and the result is a tasty, fruity, and yellow-hued cocktail that we both enjoyed and would make again.
Recipe
This cocktail recipe was adapted from The Art of Vintage Cocktails by Stephanie Rosenbaum.
AuthorThe Art of Vintage CocktailsPrep Time5 minsAdd gin, triple sec, tangerine juice, lime juice, orange bitters, and ice to a shaker.
Shake for 10-20 seconds.
Strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with lime slice.
Ingredients
Directions
Add gin, triple sec, tangerine juice, lime juice, orange bitters, and ice to a shaker.
Shake for 10-20 seconds.
Strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with lime slice.
Tools & Glassware We Recommend
More Classic Cocktails
If you like this classic cocktail recipe, here are a few others we’ve tried that you may enjoy:
• Brooklyn: A rye cocktail made with dry vermouth, maraschino liqueur, and Amer Picon
• Manhattan: A whiskey cocktail made with sweet vermouth, orange bitters, an orange peels, and a cherry
• Vesper Martini: A gin and vodka cocktail made with Lillet Blanc and a lemon twist
• Martinez: A gin cocktail made with sweet vermouth, cherry liqueur, and orange bitters
