Veterans Gin Recipe

Chill glass

Place a coupe or Nick & Nora glass (or an Old Fashioned glass if preferred) in the freezer or fill it with ice water to chill while making the cocktail (3–5 minutes).

If using a lemon twist, wash and dry the lemon. Prepare a nice long twist by cutting a strip of zest about 1/2 inch wide and 2–3 inches long, avoiding pith.

Combine base ingredients

In a mixing glass filled with fresh ice, pour 2 oz London dry gin and 1/2 oz dry vermouth.

Add aromatics

Add 2 dashes orange bitters, 1 dash Angostura bitters, and a small pinch of sea salt to the mixing glass. The salt will round flavors and slightly amplify aromatics.

Stir to chill and dilute

Stir the mixture briskly but smoothly with a bar spoon for 20–30 seconds (about 20–30 turns) until properly chilled and diluted — the glass will frost slightly and the liquid should be well integrated.

Prepare glass

Discard ice water from the chilled glass (if used). If serving in an Old Fashioned glass, add one large clear ice cube now.

Double-strain

Using a Hawthorne or julep strainer (and a fine mesh if you used crushed ice), strain the stirred cocktail into the chilled coupe or over the large ice cube in an Old Fashioned glass.

Float aged rum

Gently pour 1/4 oz aged dark rum over the back of a bar spoon so it floats on the surface as a delicate top layer. This nods to depth and memory — a subtle toasted sugar and oak note.

Garnish and aromatic finish

Express the lemon twist over the surface by holding it skin-side down and giving it a quick twist to release oils, then rub the rim of the glass with it and drop it into the drink. Optionally, for a ceremonial smoky aroma, briefly light a dried bay leaf on a spoon until it smolders and hold it briefly over the glass to impart a ribbon of smoke, then discard the leaf safely.