Turf Club
Stir ∙ 3 min ∙ 24.5% ABV ∙
The Turf Club is a 1:1 stirred spirit-forward cocktail of Old Tom gin, sweet vermouth, and aromatic bitters, close kin to the Martini and Manhattan families. Soft juniper and honeyed malt from the Old Tom lead, vermouth sweetness folding in underneath, with a bitters-spiced finish and a bright orange lift.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Stir all ingredients with ice: Old Tom gin 45 mlRosso vermouth 45 mlAngostura aromatic bitters 2 dashes
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Express an orange twist over the cocktail and use as garnish
Tips
- Pre-chill the coupe before straining — with no ice in the glass, a warm one dulls the drink fast.
- Stir to a cold, silky texture over ice; the equal-parts build needs enough dilution to soften the gin's sweetness.
- Express the orange twist directly over the surface so its oils sit on top, then use it as the garnish.
- Old Tom gin is sweeter and softer than London dry — do not sub one in without expecting a drier, sharper result.
History
The Turf Club is one of the earliest known cocktails to pair gin and vermouth, predating the Martini itself. Its first known appearance in print is in George Winter's 1884 book How To Mix Drinks–Bar-Keeper's Handbook, where it called for Old Tom gin, Italian vermouth, and Peruvian bitters. Later bartenders reworked the formula: Harry Johnson's 1900 New and Improved Edition of his Bartenders' Manual switched to Plymouth gin, French vermouth, orange bitters, maraschino liqueur, and absinthe, a version echoed by Harry McElhone in 1922 and by Harry Craddock in The Savoy Cocktail Book of 1930. Because of this split lineage, later books often shortened the name to simply "Turf."
The name is tied to the gentlemen's clubs of the late 1800s and early 1900s, gathering places for business, socializing, and horse-race betting, one of the most prominent being The Turf Club that once stood on Madison Avenue in New York City. Modern versions typically follow Winter's original simpler formula of equal parts Old Tom gin and sweet vermouth with aromatic bitters, while some bars still serve the more elaborate Johnson-style build with maraschino and absinthe.
