Back in 2009, I stumbled upon a bitters recipe with two Abbott signatories on the document. Since Abbott’s was one of the most popular bitters before prohibition, it required further investigation. And that led me to present all this research at Tales of the Cocktail 2016. And now here it is for you. My original goal was to recreate the bitters […]
Bitters
Non-Alcoholic Bitters Recipe
Can you make non-alcoholic aromatic bitters? Yes you can with this relatively easy recipe.
Union Bitters
Once a proprietary “medicine” once sold as “Seabury’s Union Bitters” that would be found “grateful and comforting” in all cases where manhood needs to be restored, or where men have lost their self-respect and interest in each other’s welfare. This is pretty typical marketing for these types of “medicine” in the 1800s. Some historical documents claim it was to be […]
Royal Bitters
Possibly of Canadian origin from the 1875 to 1885 time period. [popup_anything id=”10231″] Royal Bitters Recipe: Fennel 6 oz Coriander 6 oz Cloves 6 oz Cassia Cinnamon 6 oz Bitter Orange Peel 1¼ lbs Lemon Peel 1¼ lbs Calisaya Bark 1½ lbs Peppermint Leaves 2 lbs Balm Leaves 2½ lbs Instructions To make Ivan Bitters take 60 ml (2 oz) of […]
Riga Balsam
A Latvian specialty bitter / liqueur. It is considered to be a good cold remedy and is used to treat digestive problems. Riga Balsam Recipe: Oil of Mustard Seed 1 tsp Oil of Thyme, red 2 oz Oil of Marjoram 1 oz Oil of Lovage 2 oz Lemon Oil 2 oz Oil of Elecampane 8 oz Saffron Tincture 2 oz Instructions Take 1 […]
Hunt Bitters
A bitters recipe that currently doesn’t have a detailed history. Hunt Bitters Recipe: Mace 4 oz Cinnamon 4 oz Tonka Bean 8 oz Calamus Root 8 oz Star Anise 1 lb Peppermint Leaves 7½ lbs Instructions To make the Hartz Aromatic Bitters from the above essence, take 1 oz of essence and combine it with 1700 ml of 25% alcohol, […]
Last Call for Abbott’s Bitters
The barrel is dry and the last of the Extinct Abbott’s bitters have been bottled. That means there are only 300 bottles left and once they are gone, that will probably be the end. Have no doubt they are a great tasting bitter and the research does point to this being the original Abbott’s recipe. However, these bitters are not […]
Taggart’s Bitters
A recipe created by Chuck Taggart that was inspired by the flavour of old bottles of Abbott’s Bitters. Taggart’s Bitters Recipe: Gentian Root 1 tbls Cinchona Bark ½ tsp Quassia Bark 2 tsp Ginger Root 1 tbls Cardamom Seed, whole 2 tsp Cardamom Seed, crushed 2 tsp Cinnamon Bark 1½ tbls Cloves 2½ tbls Allspice 2 tsp Nutmeg ½ tsp […]
Abbott’s Bitters
After 3½ years of extensive research, Abbott’s Bitters is just about ready to be revived. This is not a reverse engineered project, this is based on an old recipe I found that had an Abbott’s name on it. For the full history of my Abbott’s research, check out this slidecast. I am taking pre-orders for bottles of Abbott’s which should […]
Abbott’s Bitters Quest
Tasting history is one of the more enjoyable aspects of classic cocktails, however many of those original ingredients have been lost to time. Abbott’s bitters is one of those ingredients, and without it we really don’t know how the original Manhattan tasted. Sure, there are those rare vintage bottles of Abbott’s bitters floating around on eBay, but those bottles are […]
Hartz Bitters
Not much is know about this aromatic bitters recipe. Hartz Bitters Recipe: Nutmeg 3 oz Ginger 5 oz Cinnamon Bark 8 oz Cloves 8 oz Cascarilla Bark 1 lb Gentian Root 1½ lbs Bitter Orange Fruits 2 lbs Calamus Root 4 lbs Instructions Combine the ingredients in a mortar and grind to a coarse powder and then pack in a […]
Italian Bitters
This recipe creates an Italian-style aromatic bitters. The source of this recipe groups aromatic bitters with things like Benedictine and Chartreuse. Cocktail type bitters would be called “Strong Bitters”. Italian Bitters Recipe: Rosemary Leaves 2 oz Thyme 5 oz Sage 5 oz Majoram 5 oz Cloves 7 oz Cinnamon 8 oz Orris Root 12 oz Wormwood 12 oz Fennel 12 […]