Brown Derby
- 2 oz60 ml bourbon
- 1 oz30 ml fresh grapefruit juice
- ¾ oz22 ml honey syrup
- Chill a coupe.
- Shake the bourbon, grapefruit juice and honey syrup with ice until very cold.
- Strain into the coupe and express a grapefruit twist over the top.
Garnish: grapefruit twist
The syrup
In this recipe
Honey Syrup¾ oz22 ml
Honey syrup is equal parts honey and warm water stirred together until smooth, with no boiling needed.
2:1 honey syrup is about 1.5x as sweet as our 1:1, so 1/2 oz becomes 3/4 oz of ours
As printed: 1/2 oz honey syrup (2:1 honey:water, Death & Co); Oxford Companion does not give a ratio
Where it comes from
The whiskey-grapefruit-honey formula was printed as the De Rigueur in the Savoy Cocktail Book (1930) and renamed the Brown Derby in a 1933 Hollywood recipe book. Dale DeGroff revived it in The Craft of the Cocktail (2002), and the link to a Hollywood nightclub appears to be legend.
Source: The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock (1930).
Checked against: Oxford Companion to Spirits & Cocktails - Brown Derby (via Spirits & Distilling) · Robert F. Moss - The Tale of Two Derbies (Brown Ones) · Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails - Brown Derby (Death & Co spec) · Punch - Brown Derby · Kindred Cocktails - Brown Derby
The Savoy Cocktail Book (Harry Craddock)
Gear for this drink
Mixology & Craft 16-Piece Cocktail Shaker Set
OXO SteeL Angled Measuring Jigger
Best for Measuring syrup into drinks
Cuisinart Fine Mesh Stainless Strainers (set of 3)
Best for Every infused or fruit syrup