The Legend of the Green Swizzle
Bertie Wooster has this to say of Green Swizzles:
I have never been in the West Indies, but I am in a position
to state that in certain of the fundamentals of life they are streets ahead
of our European civilization. The man behind the counter, as kindly a bloke
as I ever wish to meet, seemed to guess our requirements the moment we
hove into view. Scarcely had our elbows touched the wood before he was
leaping to and fro, bringing down a new bottle with each leap. A planter,
apparently , does not consider he has had a drink unless it contains at
least seven ingredients, and I'm not saying, mind you, that he isn't right.
The man behind the bar told us the things were called Green Swizzles;
and, if ever I marry and have a son, Green Swizzle Wooster is the name
that will go down in the register, in memory of the day his father's life
was saved at Wembley.
from "The Rummy Affair of Old Biffy,"
by P. G. Wodehouse
While the recipe for Green Swizzles has been lost in history, this page
includes some other swizzle recipes and general information. (Click here
for an apocryphal follow-up to Bertie's day at Wembley.)
Page Contents:
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G. Wodehouse Appreciation Page.
Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide on Swizzles
"Swizzles originated in the West Indies, where everything, including hot
chocolate, is swizzled. A swizzle stick is the branch of a tropical bush
with three to five forked branches on the end. You insert this in the glass
or pitcher and twirl the stem rapidly between the palms of your hands.
By rapid swizzling with fine ice, you'll get a good outside frost such
as on a Julep. Of course you won't get this frost if you haven't used enough
liquor; a generous amount of liquor is important.
Most true Swizzles, because of their origin, call for rum; but
nearly all punches can be swizzled. Punches for three or four people can
be mixed in a pitcher with fine ice and swizzled until the pitcher frosts,
and then poured into tall glasses.
Simple, good, really a good drink."
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Recipes
BERMUDA RUM SWIZZLE
-
2 limes
-
5 oz. orange juice
-
5 oz. pineapple juice
-
1 oz. grenadine
-
4 oz. dark rum
-
4 oz. light rum
-
6 dashes Angostura bitters
Squeeze lime juice into pitcher. Fill pitcher with shaved ice, add remaining
ingredients, and swizzle until a frost appears on the outside of the pitcher.
Pour into 4 12 ounce collins glasses. Garnish with an orange slice, a lime
slice, and a swizzle stick.
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MARTINIQUE SWIZZLE
-
1/2 lime
-
1 dash Angostura bitters
-
1 dash rock candy syrup [saturated sugar-water solution]
-
1 dash Herbsaint [may use Pernod or anisette]
-
2 ounces rum
Squeeze lime juice into 14 ounce chimney glass filled with shaved ice;
save shell. Add remaining ingredients. Swizzle until drink is uniform.
Decorate with spent lime shell, fresh mint, and a long stirrer.
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KONA SWIZZLE
-
1/2 lime
-
1/2 ounce orgeat syrup (French almond syrup)
-
1/2 ounce Barbados Rum (medium cane rum - can substitute Puerto Rican gold
rum)
-
1 ounce Diergert's Bouquet rum
Squeeze lime juice into 12 ounce sling or punch glass, filled with shaved
ice; save lime shell. Add orgeat and rums. Swizzle until drink is uniform.
Decorate with spent lime, fresh mint, and fruit stick.
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KINGSTON SWIZZLE (HOT)
-
1/2 lime
-
1 teaspoon bar sugar
-
2 ounces dark Jamaica rum
-
Hot water
Squeeze lime juice into 12 ounce glass; add spent shell. Add sugar, and
stir well. Add rum and enough hot water to nearly fill glass. Serve with
swizzle stick.
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GREEN SWIZZLE*
-
1/2 oz. green creme de menthe
-
one pinch sugar
-
2 oz. gin
-
2 dashes Angostura bitters
-
seltzer
Add creme de menthe, sugar, and 2 oz. seltzer to collins glass. Fill glass
with shaved ice and swizzle thoroughly. Add gin and bitters, fill glass
with seltzer. Server with mint leaf and swizzle stick. Drinker does final
swizzle.
*Not what Bertie had at Wembley.
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GENERIC SWIZZLE
-
1 lime
-
1 tsp powdered sugar
-
2 oz seltzer
-
shaved ice
-
2 dashes bitters
-
2 oz liquor
-
seltzer
Combine juice of lime, powdered sugar, and 2 oz. seltzer in 12 oz. collins
glass. Fill glass with shaved ice, and mix well. Add bitters and liquor;
top glass with seltzer. Drinker does final swizzle.
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Other Swizzles on the Net
Not to show partiality towards Black
Seal Rum, I'll mention that Bacardi
and Captain Morgan are on the Web, too.
In fact, Vermont Department of Liquor Control has been kind enough to provide
descriptions of more than thirty
different rums.
If you're curious, you can also see the Angostura
Bitters Home Page; it's not just for swizzles anymore.
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Other Cocktails in Print
Presented in association with Amazon.Com:
The World's Best Bartender's Guide, by
Joseph Scott and Donald Bain
The Art of the Cocktail, by Philip Collins
Beachbum Berry's Grog Log, by Jeff Berry & Annene Kaye
Or browse Amazon.Com's collection of
Spirits and
Bartending books.
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Page maintained by Tom
Kreitzberg. Please send comments, suggestions, recipes, and remembrances
to tak@smart.net. Last modified November
5, 1999.
