Vermouth, stirred
Chrysanthemum
Barline 2,h,2b,co
The code is the shorthand off my printed menu; the Key tab decodes every letter.
- 2 oz Dry vermouth
- 1/2 oz Bénédictine
- 2 barspoons Absinthe
Stir with ice until cold, then strain.
Coupe, orange twist.
Taste
Two ounces of dry vermouth, half an ounce of Benedictine, two barspoons of absinthe. The vermouth is the drink; the liqueur is honeyed spice; two barspoons of absinthe is a pour, anise laid over the wine. Stirred, coupe, orange twist.
History
Hugo R. Ensslin prints the Chrysanthemum in Recipes for Mixed Drinks (1917, and likely the 1916 first edition): equal French vermouth and Benedictine, three dashes of absinthe, orange peel. Harry Craddock's 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book dries it to two-thirds vermouth and one-third Benedictine, still three dashes of absinthe, and notes it was "well-known and very popular in the American Bar of the S.S. Europa." Difford's suggests the name may track Scott Joplin's 1904 ragtime piece The Chrysanthemum, issued on record in 1916. This menu is two ounces of dry vermouth, half an ounce of Benedictine, and two barspoons of absinthe, stirred, orange twist.
Same shape, other bottles
The Vermouth family, with the bottle that changed.
- Tip Topwithout absinthe
- Diplomatmaraschino liqueur for Bénédictine
- Sherry Cobblersherry for dry vermouth
- Adonissherry and sweet vermouth for dry vermouth
- Bamboowith sherry
- Coronation No. 1maraschino liqueur for Bénédictine
This is one drink on my home bar's menu. Tick the bottles you own and the menu lists which of all 185 drinks they pour.