Drink of the Week: Scoff Law Cocktail

The lovely ladies of LUPEC* Boston are running a monthly column highlighting an endangered cocktail. This month's spotlight falls upon the Scoff Law Cocktail. According to Ted Haigh's book Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails, the Scoff Law was created during Prohibition in honor of those who kept their spirits (ahem) high despite the regulations.

I liked that the ladies gave us a variation in case there was no real pomegranate grenadine at hand. I did have to chuckle a wee bit though since the variation called for Green Chartreuse. In my neck of the woods, if there's no house-made grenadine at the bar, there is a snowball's chance in hell that the bar will have Chartreuse in their inventory.

Fortunately we have both in our bar so in the spirit of experimentation we made both versions. The grenadine version reminded me a little of a Jack Rose. Very drinkable, not too sweet, definitely going into rotation. The Chartreuse version had more complexity due to the herbal nature of that liqueur. Amazingly, the sweetness in this well-balanced drink was just right.

Scoff Law Cocktail
Combine in an iced cocktail shaker:

• 1 1/2 ounces rye
• 1 ounce vermouth
• 3/4 ounce grenadine (real grenadine that you or someone else made with real pomegrante juice, not Rose's)
• 3/4 lemon juice

Shake until well chilled. Strain into a cocktail glass.

For the Chartreuse variation substitute 3/4 ounce of Green Chartreuse for the grenadine.

* Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails. Check 'em out: LUPEC Founding Chapter, my local chapter.