The Barnum (was Right) Cocktail: Gin, apricot liqueur, lemon, Angostura bitters

For this one, I turned back to Ted Haigh (AKA Dr. Cocktail)’s Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. It had such a great name that I just couldn’t resist.

And it uses apricot liqueur, too. The only other thing I have used that in is Fish House Punch. So I was happy to have another use for it.

To make the Barnum (was Right) Cocktail, combine with ice:

• 2 oz gin (I used Ivanabitch, a cheap London-style gin)
• 1 oz apricot liqueur (I used Rothman and Winter Orchard Apricot)
• 1/2 oz lemon juice
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters

shake well, and strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a lemon twist.

It’s not often that I turn to the older cocktails. For the most part, they seem all played out. The really good ones have been adopted as modern drinks and no longer seem foreign. The other ones, well, there’s a reason they were forgotten.

But this one is good! Really good. Notice that there’s no simple syrup. That’s because there’s an entire ounce of apricot liqueur, which really shines in the drink. I would say that it’s more of an apricot drink than anything else. It just comes through so fruitily.

So my temporal bias against the past may be misplaced, I admit. The Barnum deserves a seat at the bar.

Don’t let anyone fool you: Barnum was right. I’ll part with my money for this cocktail, any day.