Once you become an expert on the golden elixir, you’ll never lack for stimulating chitchat at the bar. No matter that it may be just that. The folks at Drambuie aren’t saying.
Their whiskey-and-honey concoction stands by itself and needs no marketing propaganda. It’s at least 250 years old and has withstood wars and famine and probes of its ingredients. The formula kept its secret until 1746. Then Prince Charles Edward Stuart, in what only could be battle fatigue, revealed its mystery.
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. In Scotland, like no place else, liquor-making goes beyond art form to the magical wands of fairies on the heath. Scottish grain ripens amid the highland winds and the foggy stills. Heather is all around and gently flavors whiskey.
Prince Charles in 1746 was groggy from losing the battle of Culloden. He received sanctuary from John MacKinnon on the Isle of Skye. In return, or more in the haze of battle shock, the prince passed the recipe to his host.
MacKinnon may have coined its name, from the Gaelic phrase “An Dram Buidheach,” meaning “the drink that satisfies.”
MacKinnon passed it to James Ross, who softened its harshness for his hotel guests. When he died, his widow sold the recipe to another Scottish MacKinnon family not related to John. They since have produced and marketed Drambuie worldwide.
The company is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first bottle to roll off its line. In 1910, it sold only 12 cases. Business took off as the liqueur was approved for the House of Lords.
The thrust that powered the stuff worldwide was the British soldier, whose rucksack carried it throughout the Empire.
In America, Drambuie mostly is an after-dinner drink, sometimes mixed, egad, with ice cream for a Dram Alexander. Elsewhere, it is a complete liquor, served in neat shots, sometimes even flamed.
Drambuie is evolving into a cocktail liquor. This brings us to the Rusty Nail, not the rock group, the cocktail.
Admittedly, Scotch whisky is an acquired habit. It is biting, smoky and strong. The blending of 1 part Drambuie to 1 part Scotch counterbalances the Scotch flavor. It is served in an old-fashioned glass on the rocks or neat.
Pour the blend into a glass filled with crushed ice. Stir gently until a frost develops on the glass. Serve with a lemon twist.
A Straight Up Nail is a Rusty Nail without ice. A Donald Sutherland uses rye instead of Scotch.
