The Turf Club Cocktail: A Sophisticated, High-Proof Time Machine
Before the dry Martini became a sterile icon of the mid-century, bartenders in late 19th-century New York were building drinks with serious teeth. Enter the Turf Club. This isn’t a delicate, watered-down sipper; it’s an unapologetically spirit-forward, high-proof classic. If you love a crisp gin cocktail but want a drink with an intriguing edge, the Turf Club belongs in your regular rotation.
Because we aren’t hiding behind citrus juices or heavy modifiers, the quality of your anise spirit matters. While purists often look for a traditional, distilled verte (green) absinthe for its earthy alpine finish, you’ll spot a bottle of Herbsaint in my ingredients photo below instead. It turns out this choice is a nod to pure cocktail history.
When the 1912 ban forced authentic absinthe out of American bars, New Orleans-born Herbsaint stepped into the spotlight as the definitive, historically accurate replacement. While it skips the wormwood of a traditional verte, it delivers a massive, crisp star anise punch that binds beautifully to the juniper in the gin. Using Herbsaint doesn’t just give the cocktail a lingering, botanical finish that evolves with every sip; it honors the exact bottle bartenders relied on for decades to keep the Turf Club alive.
Ingredients for a Turf Club Cocktail
- 2 oz. High-quality Gin (A traditional, juniper-forward London Dry stands up best to the heavy hitters here)
- 3/4 oz. Dry Vermouth (Keep it fresh, keep it refrigerated)
- 1/4 oz. Maraschino Liqueur (Like Luxardo)
- 2 dashes Absinthe or Herbsaint (Don’t hold back, a full two dashes lets that herbal complexity shine)
- 2 dashes Orange Bitters
- Garnish: A fresh lemon peel
How to Make a Turf Club Cocktail
- Freeze Your Glass: Put a coupe or a Nick & Nora glass in the freezer. A drink this boozy needs to be served ice-cold.
- The Build: In a mixing glass filled to the brim with clean ice, pour in your gin, dry vermouth, maraschino, absinthe and orange bitters.
- Stir with Intention: Stir gently for a full 30 seconds. Because this is a 100% spirit cocktail, stirring preserves that crystal-clear appearance and heavy, luxurious mouthfeel while dialing in the perfect amount of chill and dilution.
- Strain and Express: Strain into your frozen glass. Express a fresh lemon peel right over the surface to let the bright citrus oils cut through the rich, heavy spirits and drop the peel right into the glass.
