The Alaska Cocktail is a gin and Chartreuse recipe we love

The Alaska Cocktail was invented some time back in the 1910s, and though cocktail historians are uncertain as to how it picked up its name, we think it’s a gin and Yellow Chartreuse number that deserves to be remembered a little better.

Perhaps it’s the use of Yellow Chartreuse that sparks thoughts of a cold Alaskan mountain; the herbal, 40 percent ABV liquor (Green Chartreuse weighs in at a heftier 55 percent ABV) hails from the Rhône Alps in France, where it is often drunk at the end of a day in the mountains or on the slopes.

The Alaska Cocktail is, at its heart, a Martini variation: swap out the vermouth for Yellow Chartreuse and add a drop or two of orange bitters and you’re on your way.

The Alaska Cocktail first appeared in the 1913 book, Straub’s Manual of Mixed Drinks, by Jacques Straub. Straub — as his book points out — was born in Switzerland; he found his way to the USA, working in both Kentucky and later, in Chicago.

Alaska Cocktail

Ingredients

• 45ml gin
• 15ml Yellow Chartreuse
• 2 dashes orange bitters

Instructions

1. Stir all ingredients with ice until very cold.
2. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Notes

The Alaska Cocktail first appeared in the 1913 book, Straub’s Manual of Mixed Drinks, by Jacques Straub. Straub — as the book points out — was born in Switzerland and ended up working in the USA in Kentucky and then in Chicago.