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Derby Fizz

Aperitivo/aperitif · Breakfast/brunch · Classic/vintage

3.8 8 ratings

Ingredients

1/2 oz Lemon juice
2 barspoon Powdered sugar
2 oz Scotch whisky
1/4 oz Orange Curaçao
1/2 oz Egg white
2 oz Soda water

How to make

Serve in a fizz or highball (8oz to 10oz)

  1. 1 STIR lemon juice and sugar in base of shaker until sugar is dissolved
  2. 2 Add Scotch and orange curaçao, SHAKE with ice and strain back into shaker
  3. 3 DRY SHAKE (without ice) and slowly pour 2/3rds of the contents of the shaker from a higher than normal height into a chilled empty glass (no ice in glass) while simultaneously pouring soda with your other hand
  4. 4 The cocktail and soda should form a single stream of liquid falling into the glass
  5. 5 As when pouring a Guinness, to achieve a perfect head on a Derby Fizz, the cocktail should be left to settle for at least a minute before topping off with what remains in the shaker
  6. 6 Ideally, during the settling period, the glass should be placed in a glass froster/fridge/freezer
  7. 7 As the final contents of the shaker are poured into the glass so the head should rise like a soufflé.

Flavour profile

History

The "Derby" name suggests bourbon, and this fizz can be made with it, but orange curaçao's nuances fit better with Scotch whisky.

The Derby Fizz is understood to have debuted in the 1934 Old Mr. Boston Bartender's Guide, though it does not appear in the 1934 edition that is bound like a pamphlet and owned by this researcher. It is listed among the cocktails in the "supplementary list" found in William James "Billy" Tarling's 1937 Café Royal Bar Book, but unfortunately, no recipe is provided.