The Bronx is a pre-prohibition cocktail consisting of gin, sweet and dry vermouth and orange juice. Once again there is are several claims as to who invented it, (either Joseph Sormani, a Bronx restaurateur or Johnnie Solan from the Waldorf-Astoria hotel).
This is the story unearthed by the Waldorf-Astoria hotel historian which is printed in the 1935 edition of their anonymous bar book. The Duplex (equal measures of sweet and dry vermouth shaken with orange peel or bitters) was a popular drink at time and while Solan was making one for a customer the Head waiter came in and asked him to create a drink for another customer who bet he couldn’t do it. He took the challenge, added gin to the Duplex and served it to the Head waiter who loved it. Thus the Bronx was born. In case you were wondering it’s not named after the New York borough or the river, but rather the Bronx Zoo, where Solan had visited the day before. It also appears in the Savoy Cocktail book, where a version with an egg white, a ‘Silver Bronx’ is also listed.
Not one for fruity drinks, I found the orange juice is tempered by the vermouth to give a really a flavoursome drink that isn’t too sweet or sickly.
Ingredients for the Bronx
30ml gin (I used East London Liquor Company Dry gin
15ml Dolin Dry vermouth
15ml Dolin Sweet vermouth
15ml freshly squeezed orange juice.
Method
Shake the ingredients together with ice and then strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Enjoy!
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