Lord Digby's Classic Cocktails Quiz

Answer: Whisky

The origin of the Manhattan cocktail is divided. Some believe it was invented by a Dr Iain Marshall, who was hosting a party for Winston Churchill's wife, Lady Randolph Churchill, at the Manhattan Club. Another well-known theory is that it was invented by a bartender known as "Black" at the Hoffman House. One thing we do know for certain is that it did become very popular at the Manhattan Club.

On to the recipe. There may be variations, but at the Digby party, a Manhattan cocktail consists of whisky, vermouth, dashes of bitters and cherry eau de vie. Ice and a cocktail cherry are down to preference.

Answer: Whisky

Here we have another classic cocktail whose origins are unclear. It has been suggested that it first appeared at the New York British Industries Trade Fair in 1937. The 21 Club bar in New York City has also been credited for the cocktail. In the early 1950s-1960s, US singer Frank Sinatra was associated with the cocktail at P.J.'s restaurant along with his friends from the Rat Pack.

Rusty Nail Recipe. Scotch whisky and Drambuie, a 50/50 mix. And a strip of lemon peel to garnish, which is optional.

For those that don't know, Drambuie is a Scottish whisky-based liqueur with heather honey, herbs and spices.

Answer: Whisky

The only real difference between a Rob Roy and a Manhattan is the Rob Roy has a Scottish whisky, whereas the Manhattan has an American whisky or bourbon. Both are a nice cocktail.

The Rob Roy is thought to have first been made at the original Fifth Avenue location of the Waldorf Astoria, in New York, more than ten years after the Manhattan, maybe around 1894. The drink was inspired by an operetta called "Rob Roy" that was shown at the neighbouring Herald Square Theatre, according to NYC barman and author of "The Waldorf Astoria Bar Book", whose name was Frank Caiafa.

Digby's Ingredients. Scotch whisky, sweet vermouth, three dashes of Angostura bitters and, for garnish, brandied cherries. Sometimes I use equal parts of sweet and dry vermouth.

Answer: Vodka

Although the Moscow Mule sounds like it is a cocktail from Russia, it is in fact a cocktail that was invented in America. The origin of this classic cocktail was said to be between 1939 and 1941, and it was invented by two people. The first person was a man called John Martin who owned a distribution company that had just bought the US rights for Smirnoff vodka, which at that time was more or less unheard of, so he needed to offload his stock.

Another man called Jack Morgan had too much ginger beer in stock at his pub named the "Cock 'n' Bull". When the men were talking about their stock, they came up with the idea to mix the two drinks together with a splash of lime. It also has to be said that Wes Price, who was the barman at the pub, invented the cocktail. One thing for certain is the cocktail did originate from the "Cock 'n' Bull".

Quite a simple cocktail really, you just need vodka, ginger beer and a splash of lime. It is known that this drink has a history of being served in a copper mug; it is said the copper mug keeps the drink cooler; however, any glass can be used.

Answer: Vodka

The history of this cocktail is unclear, but it is believed to date back to the late 1970s or early 1980s.

To make the Woo Woo you need vodka, peach schnapps, cranberry juice and a few drops of lime juice. An early creation for the cocktail was made using peach schnapps, vodka, orange juice and grenadine, but nowadays, my first recipe is now commonplace.

A close relative to the Woo Woo is "Sex on the beach" The IBA official cocktail is made from vodka, peach schnapps, orange juice, and cranberry juice.

Answer: Vodka

The Sea Breeze cocktail is an updated version of the "Sea Breeze Cooler". The recipe for this cocktail was in "The Savoy Cocktail Book", by Harry Craddock, from 1930. The sea breeze cooler had gin for its base instead of vodka, apricot brandy, lemon, and grenadine.

The Sea Breeze gained in popularity because the company Ocean Spray promoted cranberry juice in the 1950s and 1960s. This had the effect that the sea breeze became popular. This cocktail now had vodka, cranberry juice, and grapefruit juice with a slim slice of lime.

Answer: Rum

The classic daiquiri consists of white rum, fresh lime juice, and sugar syrup; demerara syrup works well as a substitute.

Jennings Cox, an American mining engineer, is credited as the inventor, while a U.S. Navy medical officer, Johnson Sr, brought the recipe to the United States while working in Cuba with Cox. Johnson then introduced the cocktail to the Army and Navy Club in Washington, D.C., from where it spread to other ports frequented by the army and navy.

It has been suggested that a drink consumed by British sailors to combat scurvy existed around 150 years before Cox invented his cocktail. Grog is made with watered-down dark navy rum, lime, and sugar. It is very similar to the daiquiri, except for the use of dark rum. Therefore, the classic daiquiri can be credited to Jennings Cox.

Answer: Rum

Well, to start off with, there seem to be a few variations on this Zombie cocktail, but in this recipe it has the ingredients which were invented by Donn Beach at the "Don the Beachcomber" in Hollywood in 1934. To keep it original, Digby uses the same ingredients.

According to the original IBA recipe, the zombie cocktail included three different kinds of rum, which were Jamaican dark rum, Puerto Rican gold rum and demerara rum. The rest of the cocktail consisted of lime juice, falernum, angostura bitters, pernod, grenadine, and "Don's Mix", a mixture of cinnamon syrup and grapefruit juice.

Another take on the Zombie is golden, white and 151-proof rum; if you want to make it a little weaker, use a normal dark rum instead of the 151. 151 rum is "overproof"; it has a strength of 75.5% alcohol by volume. Pineapple juice, lime juice, passion fruit syrup and grenadine, and angostura aromatic bitters. For the garnish, you can use mint leaves, maraschino cherries, or orange slices.

Answer: Rum

This classic cocktail, the Mojito, can be made with just five ingredients. White rum, mint, lime, sugar and club soda to give the cocktail a nice balance. When possible, fresh lime and mint should be used.

The origins of this cocktail are said to come from Havana in Cuba. However, who actually invented this cocktail is not known. One theory is that maybe Sir Francis Drake in the 16th century played a part. Because his crew were suffering from dysentery and scurvy, Drake had heard that the local South American Indians had medicines for all types of diseases.

Drake sent a few of his men to go ashore and bring back some medicines to see if they would help. On their return, his men brought back some ingredients which were aguardiente de cana, mint leaves, lime, and the juices from sugar cane. These ingredients were all mixed together to create a medicine. The results seemed to work, maybe because limes are a good source of vitamin C. Scurvy is a deficiency of vitamin C, so it makes sense.

A drink called "El Draque" using very similar ingredients became popular in Cuba, and it is said it was named after Drake himself.

Answer: Gin

Who would have guessed that an egg yolk would be one of the ingredients in this cocktail? To make a Broken Spur, you need white port, gin, vermouth, anisette and one egg yolk.

While I was researching, I found another combination for this cocktail. In this recipe you use gin, white port, pernod, dry vermouth, lemon juice and sugar syrup. The egg yolk is optional.

Who invented this cocktail, you may ask? Well, It's not really known for certain. There was a book published in 1927 and 1935 called "Barflies and Cocktail". In the book, it describes how it was brought out by the cavalry, which got disbanded during the war. Given that horses were used throughout World War I it is suggested that the spur part could be a reference to parts of the horse's dress.

Answer: Gin

Here we have another cocktail with an unclear history of who was the inventor. There have been two stories with possible answers. One theory is that a bartender called Jerry Thomas, who worked at the Occidental Hotel in San Francisco, invented the cocktail. Thomas was well known for popularising cocktails all over America. He also wrote a book called "Bar-Tender's Guide" in 1862. Another name in the frame was a man called Julio Richelieu, who was a bartender in Martinez, California. Julio invented the martini, and his name has also been linked, although no proof of either person can be verified.

Here is Digby's take on the Martinez. Gin, curacao, and sweet red vermouth. Digby garnishes the drink with one or two twists of orange. Digby also uses London dry gin, but any make will do just as well.

Answer: Gin

The history of the Gimlet is quite interesting. There are several stories on who invented the Gimlet. As with many cocktails, the origin of the drink seems to be in the Navy or sailors who travelled around the world. It is well known that British sailors were plagued by scurvy, and so they were given lime rations to help combat scurvy. This mixed with their ration of rum became common place and was known as "grog". However, it has been said the officers drank gin instead of rum.

Historically, the Gimlet had Rose's Lime Juice, and in 1867 it was made into law that all Navy ships should serve the concentrate as the daily ration to the crew with the rum in an effort to combat scurvy. A man called Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Desmond Gimlette has also been mentioned with the Gimlet. Gimlette was a British naval doctor who is said to be the first person that added Rose's cordial to navy rations of gin.

Initially, rum was not merely a recreational beverage but a vital daily ration for sailors. With the addition of lime juice helping to combat the scourge of scurvy that plagued long voyages.

Quite an easy cocktail to make; all you need is gin, freshly squeezed lime juice, and simple syrup (sugar in water). For the garnish, a lime wheel.