ALGONQUIN

ALGONQUIN

2 measures rye whisky

1 measure dry vermouth

1 measure pineapple juice

Lemon garnish

Former redneck country, Deepcreek Lake of Maryland, met upper-crest New York City when I drank an ALGONQUIN cocktail on the porch of a friend’s lakehouse tonight. The ALGONQUIN cocktail is the former signature cocktail of the classy Algonquin New York Hotel in Midtown Manhattan that set the standard for luxury. Around since 1902, it is still one of the best places to stay in the city, but it will set you back about $450 a night.

Fortunately, the cocktail is a lot cheaper. To make it you’ll need rye-bread whiskey, dry vermouth and pineapple juice. Put the three of them into a cocktail shaker, fill it with ice, shake and strain it into a glass filled with ice. Garnish with a lemon slice and drink under a fancy chandelier if possible.

Robin and I, both pineapple lovers, thought the ALGONQUIN cocktail was smooth and not very "alcoholly." We had a long discussion on how we loved it much better than yesterday’s cocktail, but not as much as tomorrow’s. Then we sang “More Today than Yesterday,” the 1969 song by Spiral Staircase. The menfolk in the group did not like the pineapple so much, but said it did hide the whiskey well and that the cocktail was just “so-so.” It was an exploratory cocktail for all of us and topped off a good day exploring Deepcreek Lake — one of my new favorite places.

Drink Up^

Cocktail Connie