Angel Face
Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 26.1% ABV ∙
The Angel Face is an IBA equal-parts cocktail of London dry gin, apricot brandy liqueur, and Calvados, shaken and served up.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: London dry gin 30 mlApricot brandy liqueur 30 mlCalvados 30 ml
- Strain into the chilled cocktail glass
Tips
- There is no citrus here to hide a short shake, so give it a hard, full 15 seconds over fresh cracked ice.
- Choose an aged Calvados over a young, harsh one; its apple comes through better against the gin and apricot liqueur.
History
The Angel Face is a classic gin, apricot brandy, and Calvados cocktail first documented in Harry Craddock's Savoy Cocktail Book, published in 1930 while Craddock was head bartender at London's Savoy Hotel. Its exact origin before that print appearance is not established, and sources disagree on both its birthplace and namesake. Some accounts propose a French origin, tying the drink's Calvados to Harry MacElhone of Harry's New York Bar in Paris and dating its creation to 1919, in celebration of the World War I victory. This remains an unverified theory rather than a documented fact. On the name, one popular explanation credits a mobster, Abe "Angel Face" Kaminsky. A link to Humphrey Bogart's Rick Blaine in Casablanca is implausible, since the 1942 film postdates the cocktail's 1930 publication.
Craddock's original recipe called for shaking the three spirits together and straining them without garnish, a method later bartenders have often replaced with stirring. The cocktail was added to the International Bartenders Association's list of Unforgettables in 2011.
FAQ
What is in an Angel Face cocktail?
30 ml each of London dry gin, apricot brandy liqueur, and Calvados. There is no citrus or added sugar; the apricot liqueur is the only sweet element.
Is the Angel Face shaken or stirred?
Shaken, as in Craddock's original recipe, and strained into a chilled cocktail glass. Many bartenders now stir it instead. If you shake it, shake hard for a full 15 seconds; there is no citrus to hide a short shake.
What glass is an Angel Face served in?
A chilled cocktail glass, served up with no ice and no garnish.
