Skip to content
Spirlix
Log in Sign up
All cocktails Godfather

Log in to see whether your bar can pour this

Godfather

Classic/vintage · Hall of Fame and must know/try

4.0 252 ratings

Ingredients

2 oz Scotch whisky
2/3 oz Amaretto liqueur
2 drop Boker's style bitters

How to make

Serve in a old-fashioned glass

Prepare

  1. 1 Select and pre-chill an OLD-FASHIONED GLASS.
  2. 2 Prepare garnish of orange zest twist.

Method

  1. 3 STIR all ingredients with ice.
  2. 4 STRAIN into ice-filled glass (preferably over a large cube or chunk of block ice).

Garnish

  1. 5 EXPRESS orange zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Flavour profile

29.1% alc./vol. · 1.7 standard drinks · 207 calories

History

Scotch diluted and lightly sweetened with added almond notes - simple yet flavorful. Proportions vary, but 3:1 (60ml scotch to 20ml amaretto) provides enough amaretto to soften the scotch without overpowering the whisky.

The Godfather, a classic from the 1970s, offers a spirited twist on the Old-Fashioned, replacing simple sugar with the richer flavor of liqueur. Its place among the "God damn" cocktail family is cemented by its appearance in Stanley M. Jones' 1977 Jones' Complete Barguide and various cocktail books throughout the 1980s. The drink is named after the iconic Italian-American Mafia book and film trilogy, "The Godfather," which began with Mario Puzo's novel in 1969 and Francis Ford Coppola's hugely successful film in March 1972. The earliest known mention of the Godfather, along with the Godmother and French Connection, appears in Brian F. Rea's 1976 Brian's Booze Guide. This early recipe calls for one part amaretto to one-and-a-half parts Scotch. Godfather Build in an old fashioned glass filled with ice cubes 1 ounce Amaretto 1½ ounces Scotch However, Jones' and most other cocktail books from that era feature a 1:1 ratio of Scotch to amaretto (1oz each), resulting in a sweeter, dessert-like cocktail.