A Brandy Alexander is quite an infamous drink that used to be synonymous with the bars in the Upper East Side NYC during the 1970s. Given the level of sophistication that this drink comes with, which one may laud at this easy glance, it is clearly a fried-up form of the old, and now forgotten, Alexander cocktail that combined brandy, crème dry de cacao, and cream. But I suppose whoever did away with the British gin, making way for French cognac, is somewhere in the Pantheon of Unsung Heroes.
In Ensslin’s 1916 book Recipes for Mixed Drinks, one of the first published recipes for preparing an Alexander is often attributed to an American woman. According to Barry Popik, a cocktail historian, the drink was invented, for the first time, at Hotel Rector, one of the finest lobster restaurants in New York City before Prohibition. A cocktail called after its creator Troy Alexander was made so that a white beverage could be served during a dinner party in honor of Phoebe Snow.
Phoebe Snow, in case you are wondering, was a made-up persona who was featured in the promotional activities of Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad company arguably to publicize how their rail roads used anthracite in powering their locomotives, which is a clean-burning coal. This was illustrated in the advertisements by depicting Ms. Snow in transit in an all-white gown.
Still on Brandy Alexander, the first reported Alexander was actually a recipe employing 2:1 gin and her creme de cacao. Care for the etiquette when making this drink? Leave out the syrup and brace yourself with more of the brandy. This recipe is an adequate starting point to explore and make it your own. The traditional recipe includes gin, Alexander. And not such a bad drink in particular as well!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces of fine cognac
- 1 ounce of rich dark creme de cacao
- 1 ounce of cream
- Garnish with freshly grated nutmeg
Steps
- Prepare the chilled coupe in a freezer in advance after preparing the garnishes.
- In a cocktail shaker, combine ice and equal parts of cognac, creme de cacao, and cream (normally 30 ml each) with cream.
- Feel how very cold it is outside and give the shaker a good shake.
- Carefully pour the mixture into the chilled coupe glass.
- Put garnishing nutmeg for a rather elegant serving.
- Drink Brandy Alexander which has a good balance of the richness of cacao, the darkness, and the creaminess from the cream.
The Evolution of the Alexander Cocktail
Originally created with gin, over the years, the Alexander cocktail which is the most popular dessert cocktail has been changing. Popova marks, for instance, deals with how the incorporation of a brandy-styled variant of the Alexander cocktail brought about a shift in its popularity not only because of the change of flavors in 1970 but that it incorporated more. Find out more about why this is and why the Brandy Alexander Dessert cocktail became popular in the gentlemen’s Bars of Upper East Side Manhattan.
Cocktail Classics with a Twist
Classic cocktails will remain classic forever and there is no saying that they cannot be changed. This particular topic looks at the evolution of branded Vintage cocktails, in this instance the Alexander, and its current-day version. See which ingredients and serving methods modern-day bartenders are using in order to transform our old-time drinks and also learn how to create some striking variations of Brandy Alexander at home.
Cognac and Its Place in the Brandy Alexander Cocktail
They do not end with the Brandy eons. However, the inclusions of cognac cocktails go beyond the Brandy Alexander. In this article, cognac will be appreciated more as a cocktail ingredient rather than just a brandy. Understand how cognac can be used in cocktails and enhance their quality rather than making them bolder by other spirits.
Conclusion
The Brandy Alexander cocktail is an interesting development of the classic Alexander, taking a classic gin-based drink and using it to create a heavy French cognac variant. A popular cocktail in the 1970s Upper East Side bars in Manhattan, this drink is a blend of dark chocolate and richness that evolved at the beginning of the 20th century.
Its history, due to the iconic Phoebe Snow and the Hotel Rector for some of us, is quite fun and does intrigue as well. Brandy Alexander pours a number of aspects about the cognac since it is quite able to incorporate reinterpreted classic drinks. As a reminder, whether you cringe at this as a relic or embrace it in its current form, the Brandy Alexander is a perennial choice if you are looking for something elegant in your glass.
FAQs
What is a Brandy Alexander and why it’s named this?
The drink is probably named Brandy Alexander after Troy Alexander who was the bartender at Rectors located in New York City, who invented the drink with a white thunder since it was a dinner for the rarely used character of Pheobe Snow from the advertising of the early 1900’s. Good drinks.
How do you serve brandy?
For some, the joy has been evident in hardcore consumption of the brandy whereby they have chosen to go straight without any mixes. A tulip-shaped glass is what is needed; brandy is poured in and then the brandy is savored since there is no need for mixing anything. For the less hardcore and people who wish to take their brandy on the rocks, just pour the brandy over ice cubes or an ice ball and start sipping.
What about the alcoholic content of Brandy Alexander?
Brandy Alexander is sort of a drink that consists of three ingredients – brandy, liquor, and cream. It is rich in alcohol creamy in a non-syrupy kind of way, and great in flavor but not too sweet. It is as if a rich dessert is being served in a glass, except that it is a dessert that happens to contain alcohol.
What is Brandy liquor or wine?
Brandy is a pure alcoholic beverage, which is produced through the distillation of wine. The alcohol content of brandy is in the range of – 35 – 60 % by volume and usually, it is taken as a digestif after meals.
Is brandy good for health?
Due to the natural heat sensation that brandy provides, it allows the body to rest which is healthy sleeping. Additionally, that even assists in improving the immune system of a person due to the drink’s antibacterial characteristics. Brandy contains a lot of antioxidants, which makes it an excellent immune booster as well as a pathogen eliminator.
Is Brandy a whisky?
Brandy is not, however, a whiskey. Whiskey is made from a starch source and then fermented, while Brandy is prepared using wine or fermented fruit. They can never ever be one and the same since the basic ingredients used to make these beverages are always different. Whiskey is made from grain; Brandy is made from fruit.