Waldorf No. 1
Stir ∙ 3 min ∙ 30.2% ABV ∙
The Waldorf No. 1 is a stirred whiskey cocktail of rye, sweet vermouth, and a touch of absinthe, finished with orange bitters.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Stir all ingredients with ice: Rye whiskey 45 mlRosso vermouth 30 mlAbsinthe 5 mlOrange bitters 2 dashes
- Strain into the chilled glass
- Express an orange twist over the cocktail and use as garnish
Tips
- Measure the 5 ml of absinthe rather than eyeballing it; a heavy pour lets the anise take over the rye and vermouth.
- Express the orange twist over the surface; its oil picks up the orange bitters already in the drink.
History
The Waldorf No. 1 takes its name from the Waldorf Hotel in New York, the pre-1929 predecessor to the Waldorf-Astoria that once stood on Fifth Avenue where the Empire State Building now rises. The drink's earliest known print appearance is in Jacques Straub's 1914 book Drinks (some sources cite his 1913 Manual of Mixed Drinks), as an equal-parts combination of rye whiskey, Italian vermouth, and absinthe with orange bitters, shaken. The recipe was later reprinted in Albert Stevens Crockett's Old Waldorf Bar Days in 1931, a book compiled by the hotel's former publicist to preserve the bar's pre-Prohibition recipes after the original building closed. The version here uses far less absinthe and is stirred, not shaken.
Some accounts credit the cocktail to Johnny Solon, a bartender at the Waldorf's Men's Bar in the same era who is best known for creating the Bronx cocktail there, though this attribution for the Waldorf specifically rests on a single historian's telling rather than the period bar-book record itself.
FAQ
What is a Waldorf cocktail?
A stirred, Manhattan-style cocktail of rye whiskey and sweet vermouth with a touch of absinthe, named for New York's old Waldorf Hotel. At about 30% ABV, it is a strong sipper.
What is in a Waldorf No. 1?
45 ml rye whiskey, 30 ml sweet (rosso) vermouth, 5 ml absinthe, and 2 dashes of orange bitters, stirred with ice and strained into a chilled coupe.
