Brandy Crusta

Name: Brandy Crusta
Yield: 1 serving
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 2 oz cognac; 0.5 oz orange curaçao; 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice; 1 tsp maraschino liqueur; 2 dashes Angostura bitters; Sugar for rimming; Long spiral lemon peel, to garnish

The elegant 1850s original that inspired the Sidecar and the Margarita: cognac, orange curaçao, and lemon in a sugar-crusted coupe.

More drinks like this

Base

brandy

Glassware

Coupe

Flavor Profile

soursweet

Ingredients

2 oz cognac
0.5 oz orange curaçao
0.5 oz fresh lemon juice
1 tsp maraschino liqueur
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Sugar for rimming
Long spiral lemon peel, to garnish

Instructions

1Rim a chilled coupe with sugar and line the inside with a long spiral lemon peel.
2Add cognac, curaçao, lemon juice, maraschino, and bitters to a shaker with ice.
3Shake until well chilled and strain into the prepared coupe.

Origin & Story

New Orleans, 1850s

New Orleans bartender Joseph Santini is credited with creating the Brandy Crusta at his bar in the 1850s, making it one of the oldest recorded cocktails in America. Its defining feature — the broad sugar crust around the rim and a long, spiraling lemon peel lining the inside of the glass — made it the template for an entire generation of citrus-spiked spirit cocktails, including the Sidecar and ultimately the Margarita.