The History Behind Your Favourite Cocktails 

By Jasmine Kaur

From sidecar to old fashioned, each of your favourite classic cocktails entail an interesting history that you may not have known yet. 

Sazerac

Served by Antoine Peychaud from New Orleans, in an egg cup, the cocktail gets its name from the cognac, Sazerac de Forge et Fils used in it in 1838. 

Old Fashioned

Created at the Pendennis Club in Kentucky in the late 19th century, it is one of the oldest alcoholic drinks that was drunk as a response to New York’s 25th mayor’s withdrawal. 

Sidecar

It was an American army captain’s idea to sip cognac in his friend’s motorbike’s sidecar at the end of World War I that led to the invention of this drink at Harry’s New York bar in Paris. 

Gimlet 

In order to ward off scurvy in the 19th century, Sir Thomas Gimlett suggested drinking lemon juice with alcohol as a cure. The recipe was published in Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails. 

Manhattan

While there are other claims, the plausible one suggests that it was created at New York’s Manhattan club during a political event for Winston Churchill’s mother.