Waldorf No. 1
Stir ∙ 3 min ∙ 28.7% ABV ∙
The Waldorf No. 1 is a stirred whiskey cocktail of rye, sweet vermouth, and a touch of absinthe, finished with orange bitters. Silky and dense on the tongue, with a faint anise whisper trailing into a warm, lingering, bittersweet finish that stays long after the last sip.
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
- Pre-chill the coupe before straining so the drink stays cold longer once served up with no ice.
- Stir until well-chilled and diluted, then strain promptly so the rye doesn't lose its edge.
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 Manual of Mixed Drinks, published in 1913, as an equal-parts combination of rye whiskey, Italian vermouth, and absinthe with orange bitters, shaken and served over crushed ice. 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.
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 Waldorf cocktail, or Waldorf No. 1, is a stirred rye whiskey drink accented with a touch of absinthe, served up in a coupe glass with an orange twist. At about 28.7% ABV, it drinks as a firm, spirit-forward sipper closer to a Manhattan than a mixed highball.
What is in a Waldorf No. 1?
Rye whiskey, sweet (rosso) vermouth, a small measure of absinthe, and a few dashes of orange bitters, stirred with ice and strained up into a chilled coupe with an orange twist.
