Red Lion
A sour and citrus gin cocktail ∙ Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 18.8% ABV ∙
The Red Lion is a gin sour with orange liqueur, orange and lemon juice, grenadine, and a little sugar syrup, shaken and served in a sugar-rimmed coupe.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Rim the glass with sugar
- Shake all ingredients with ice: London dry gin 45 mlCognac orange liqueur (e.g., Grand Marnier) 20 mlOrange juice 20 mlLemon juice 10 mlGrenadine syrup 5 mlSugar syrup 5 mlOrange bitters 1 dash (opt.)
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Express an orange twist over the cocktail and discard
Tips
- The grenadine and sugar syrup are only 5 ml each, so measure them; a little extra and the drink turns too sweet.
History
The Red Lion was created by Arthur Tarling, head bartender at London's Café Royal, who won first prize with it in the British Empire Cocktail Competition in 1933. It first appeared in print four years later in his younger brother William "Billy" Tarling's 1937 Café Royal Cocktail Book, which credited "A. Tarling" as the inventor. The original recipe specified Booth's Gin, and the drink's name is thought to reference the red lion emblem used on that brand's bottles, though whether Tarling named it directly after the logo or for some related promotion is not established.
Notably, Tarling's original version was not red at all but a murky yellow, relying on a sugar-crusted rim rather than grenadine for balance. Later recipes dropped the sugar rim and added grenadine, which eventually gave the drink the red hue implied by its name. This Red Lion recipe keeps both the sugar rim and the grenadine. Once promoted by Booth's Gin and later associated with Grand Marnier as its orange liqueur of choice, the Red Lion has remained a fixture of gin cocktail lists since its 1930s debut.
FAQ
What is a Red Lion?
A gin sour with orange liqueur such as Grand Marnier, fresh orange and lemon juice, and a little grenadine and sugar syrup, shaken and strained into a sugar-rimmed coupe. Arthur Tarling of London's Café Royal created it and won a 1933 cocktail competition with it. It is about 18.8% ABV.
