Drink(s) of the Week: 5 Ways to Toast Repeal Day

This Monday marks the 78th anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition, so for today’s Drink of the Week we’re marking the occasion with not one, but five cocktails to help you celebrate. From what American expats tippled during that era to a contemporary cocktail that wouldn’t exist if not for Prohibition’s repeal, here are five ways to toast your right to imbibe.

The Boulevardier
New York City barman Harry McElhone didn’t wait for Prohibition to hit before he crossed the Atlantic in favor of more cocktail-friendly climes. He eventually ended up in Paris where he mixed drinks for a number of expats, including bon vivant Erskine Gwynne whose magazine The Paris Boulevardier became the namesake of McElhone’s 1920s mix of bourbon, Campari and vermouth. Click here for the recipe.

El Presidente
During Prohibition, countless Americans fled to Cuba, and chances are a good many of them tipped back an El Presidente or two. Named for that country’s head of state from 1913 to 1921, this mix of white rum, French vermouth, orange Curacao and grenadine offers a commanding taste of the Caribbean. Click here for the recipe.

The Olympic
First mixed at Ciro’s of London in the 1920s, this sister cocktail of the better-known Sidecar is the namesake of a Titanic-sized ocean liner and offers equally seismic flavors with its mix of Cognac, orange juice and a spiced orange liqueur. Click here for the recipe. Photo: Stuart Mullenberg

Fallen Angel
Another lost cocktail of the Prohibition-era, this mix of gin, lime, Angostura and crème de menthe, first shone as the namesake to Noël Coward’s 1927 Broadway play and later found print in Harry Craddock’s 1930 cocktail tome, the Savoy Cocktail Book. Click here for the recipe.

Red Hook
Without the repeal of Prohibition we wouldn’t have gems like this 21st century Manhattan riff, which is well on its way to becoming a classic in its own right. Click here for the recipe. Photo: Stuart Mullenberg