The Spirits #136: The Ward Eight
Or: What to drink when lots of things are happening at the same time
~ THE WARD EIGHT ~
60ml rye (or bourbon)
15ml lemon juice
15ml orange juice
15ml grenadine
Freeze a cocktail glass. Add the liquids to your shaker, half-fill it with ice and give it a really wholesome shakeroo. Now strain the cocktail into the cold cocktail glass and garnish with a cherry.
Some Ward Eight Notes:
The Ward Eight is named after an electoral district of Boston. It was created (as legend has it) at the city’s Locke-Ober restaurant one election eve in 1898 and proved popular before and after Prohibition, surviving just long enough to make it into all the classic cocktail books. I figured the changing political winds called for a loosely political cocktail - and actually it’s a good one!
It’s a Whiskey Sour variant, clearly, with grenadine as sweetener and a little splash of orange juice too. A squirt of soda water would not go amiss either, if you fancy.
Actually, on Election Night, I was at a party in the Green-Labour marginal seat of Bristol Central, where we drank Campari Spritzes (red) and basil-infused Gin & Tonics (green).
Do you like my new glassware? I got some new Nick & Noras for my birthday; I feel they are tailor-made for the sour.
🖊️I am Richard Godwin.
🧋My instructions for sugar syrup, ice, grenadine, orgeat, etc are here.
🧑🏫 My 10 RULES FOR MAKING COCKTAILS are here.
⚗️ My bottle recommendations are here.
📃 The full A-Z recipe archive is here.
➡️ Please find a round up of organisations helping Ukrainians here.
🏥 And here is a list of trusted charities who are helping people in Gaza.
GOOD LORD. I treated myself to a week off the Spirits last Friday in anticipation of a busy schedule. A General Election. A football tournament. And also my birthday, a little trip away to Oxford, various gatherings, meals, election-themed cocktails, plus the not undaunting task of making 60-80 Jungle Birds for the school fete last Saturday. As it turned out, my school fete cocktail shift fell just prior to the penalty shootout vs Switzerland. And let me tell you, penalty shoot outs are much better when watched with 200+ school children after 60-80 Jungle Birds when England thump home all five penalties likes it’s just the kind of thing we do now.
ANYWAY, we’re a bit bare bones this week owing to all of the above. I’ll do some proper housekeeping to make up for it soon, but I didn’t want to leave you thirsty. Meanwhile, savour the delicious combination of cold fruity booze, England men’s team in another final and a Government that is not clinically insane and hasn’t bitterly disappointed you yet. I mean you have to enjoy these moments, don’t you?
~ FIVE MORE THINGS TO MAKE WITH GRENADINE ~
WHAT I’VE BEEN WRITING
I interviewed the great SHANIA TWAIN( impress you, much?) about her extraordinary journey from mind-bending childhood poverty to country stardom to creating the bestselling album by a female artist ever, to Glastonbury, etc. Honestly her life is extraordinary - she was performing at eight to earn extra cash for her family - and it was a real pleasure to meet her. (Mail on Sunday).
SHOPPING LIST: Next week, you’ll need to get in tequila, lime, orgeat and rosewater.
I ‘invented’ the cocktail Tory Tears to consume on Thursday night/Friday morning. OK, so just a margarita with some of the Cointreau subbed for blue curaçao and mandatory salt rim, but it was a joy to drink!
I love the glasses. Do you know where they’re from?