Leap Year Cocktail: How to Make the Fabled Love-Inducing Gin Drink
Invented on Feb. 29, 1928, the Leap Year Cocktail is claimed to have inspired numerous marriage proposals. (Photo: Cody Chan/Unsplash)
The Leap Year Cocktail holds a unique significance, having been crafted specifically to celebrate Leap Year. Renowned English bartender Harry Craddock concocted this special libation on Feb. 29, 1928, for the Leap Year festivities at The American Bar in London’s Savoy Hotel. Documented in Craddock’s 1930 book “The Savoy Cocktail Book,” the gin drink is claimed to “have been responsible for more proposals than any other cocktail that has ever been mixed.”
So, let’s make one! The perfect opportunity to savor this concoction only presents itself every four years, after all.
Leap Year Cocktail Recipe
- 1.5 oz Gin of choice (we recommend an Old Tom)
- 0.5 oz Grand Marnier (or other orange liqueur)
- 0.5 oz Sweet red vermouth
- 1 dash Fresh lemon juice
- Garnish: Lemon twist
Shake all ingredients well with ice. Strain the mixture into a chilled coupe glass and squeeze a lemon twist on top before dropping it in. Enjoy responsibly, and perhaps toast to a rare leap-day romance!
In another unique intersection of gin, Leap Year and matrimony, Aviation American Gin has unveiled a special offer: $290 wedding ceremony packages at its Portland, Oregon, distillery. However, in celebration of Leap Year, the unique opportunity is available only on Feb. 29.
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