The Casino
A recipe for the Casino first appears in JA Didier’s 1909 book The Reminder: An Up-to-Date Bartender’s Vest Pocket Guide, a practical and on point guide for those in the trade. “This work is essentially what it claims to be—a reminder,” says the author. It’s a slim book, which can fit in a bartender’s vest pocket, with only recipes, omitting any history or backstory. Therefore, it’s hard to know where the Casino comes from or what it even referred to at the earliest. The word ‘casino’ is Italian for house and could mean a private dining room, a brothel, the more modern gambling establishment, or anything in between.
The drink is later mentioned in Hugo Ensslin’s 1916 book Recipes For Mixed Drinks, which he wrote when he was working as head bartender at New York City’s Hotel Wallick. Here’s his recipe:
2 dashes Maraschino
2 dashes Orange Bitters
2 dashes Lemon juice
1 drink of Old Tom
Stir well in a mixing glass with cracked ice, strain and serve with a cherry.
Ensslin’s book is also responsible for the first print reference of the cocktail Aviation. And the Casino is essentially an Aviation that’s stirred instead of shaken, and without the creme de violette, but more lemon juice.
In his 1930 book The Savoy Cocktail Book, Harry Craddock repeats the recipe almost verbatim.
Then in 1948, David Embury wrote about his version of the Casino, using orange juice instead of orange bitters. Here’s his recipe:
1 part Maraschino
1 part Lemon juice
1 part Orange juice
8 parts Gin
Follow directions for mixing the Avation.
Here again, it should be noted that at least one recipe book lists, under the name of “Casino” a quite different cocktail made with gin, whisky, Cointreau, slivovitz, and Italian vermouth. Horror of horrors!
Regarding the ingredients, there’s much room for interpretation. For instance, for the gin, you might want to use a slightly aged gin, which will give the drink a layered complexity. Soft, floral gins, will also work surprisingly well with the drink, bringing a softness of character to each sip. Try to avoid especially acerbic gins that are strong and on the nose, since they might then overpar the other ingredients and bland the taste of the cocktail in a way.
The lemon juice brings a sourness to the cocktail that adds an interesting tone to the drink. The sourness is complemented by the brighter fruit note of the Maraschino liqueur. And the orange bitters add a dimension of bitterness that gives a kick with each sip. Bringing all these flavours together, the drink, overall, is complex, nuanced and well worth the effort that goes into making it. Serve in a chilled glass filled with ice and you’re good to go.
Ingredients
Method
- Pour all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake well with ice.
- Strain into a chilled rocks glass with ice.
- Garnish with lemon zest and a maraschino cherry.
