1980s Recipes + Menus

Horse’s Neck

May 1983
    It’s a wonder that PETA hasn’t protested this drink. It’s been subjected to all manner of indignity, starting with the removal of its alcohol during Prohibition, then, as David Embury, who wrote The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (1948), pointed out, “it degenerated still further by putting in gin.” The soda gun further damaged a perfectly nice cocktail, but the increased availability of ginger ales with flavor puts this highball back in the running (of course you can also make your own). The noted mixologist Dale DeGroff maintains that this is the “only cocktail named for its garnish—a lemon peel shaped, of course, like a horse’s neck.” But not to worry, no animals are harmed in the making of this recipe.

    1 lemon, 1 jigger (1 1/2 ounces) straight rye or blended whiskey, chilled ginger ale

    With a lemon zester remove the rind from the lemon in a long spiral, beginning at 1 end and working around the lemon. Arrange the spiral in a highball glass, hooking 1 end of the spiral over the edge of the glass, and fill the glass with ice. Add the rye and 1 to 2 teaspoons juice from the lemon or to taste, stir the mixture, and fill the glass with the ginger ale. Makes 1 drink.
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