Bennett
4.2 72 ratings
Ingredients
How to make
Serve in a coupe glass
Method
- 1 Select and pre-chill a COUPE GLASS.
- 2 Prepare garnish of float dehydrated lime wheel.
- 3 SHAKE all ingredients with ice.
- 4 FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.
Flavour profile
18.8% alc./vol. · 1.4 standard drinks · 177 calories
History
Bitters, judiciously added, are key to this Gimlet-like cocktail. It is palatable with dry gin, but superior with old tom gin, as specified in the original 1922 recipe. Should the old tom gin be sweet, the sugar syrup may be reduced.
The Bennett Cocktail first appeared in Robert Vermeire’s 1922 publication, Cocktails: How to Mix Them. Its recipe was subsequently featured in Nakata Seizō’s 1926 Japanese book, Kakuteru Seihō Hiketsu (The Secrets of Cocktail Making), and again in 1930’s Cocktails by “Jimmy” Late of Ciro’s London, authored by the enigmatic Jimmy. All three of these early formulations specify old tom gin as the base spirit and do not call for the addition of sugar. In contrast, most contemporary renditions of the Bennett, such as the one crafted by Meaghan Dorman in 2015 at The Bennett in New York City, USA, opt for dry gin instead of old tom. Vermeire presented the recipe and its background as follows: "Bennett Cocktail Fill the shaker half full of broken ice and add: 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters. 2/6 gill of Old Tom Gin. 1/6 gill of fresh Lime Juice. Shake well and strain into a cocktail-glass. This cocktail, which is very popular in Chili, is called after the well-known and popular landowner and millionaire of that country." Nakata Seizō's version, translated from Japanese, outlines the preparation: "[Translated from Japanese.] Bennett Cocktail Glassware: Cocktail glass. Fill the shaker about halfway with cracked ice. Add 3 cocktail glass Old Tom Gin, 3 cocktail glass lime juice, and 1 drop Angostura bitters. Add the above, shake well, and pour into a cocktail glass." Jimmy’s book provided a concise recipe: "BENNETT 2 parts Old Tom Gin 1 part Lime Juice 2 dashes Angostura Bitters per cocktail."