Paddington

Ever since I got The PDT Cocktail Book I have been perhaps a little starstruck.

I love the look and the feel of the book, but can also see that it is cleverly disguised to take over from that other modern cocktail bible: The Savoy Cocktail Book.

So actually I wish the book had a more innovative look but the contents are undeniably good.

And the layout with explanations of everything and a solid section of recipes is very good. It will be a go to book, I'm sure.

I settled on Paddington as my first PDT-cocktail.

I'm a huge fan of the bear and my brother and I loved the sentence: My grandmother has fallen out of the stagecoach.

Once I started chuckling at that the rest was easy:

• 6 cl rum
• 2 cl Lillet Blanc
• 2 cl grapefruite juice
• 2 cl lemmon juice
• barspoon of orange marmalade.

Put everything in a shaker with ice and shake vigorously, strain into chilled cocktail coupe and garnish with a sliver of grapefruit peel.

Vesper

I have to admit I've been a bit pig headed about this cocktail. I've considered it a gimmicky martini and only mixed it with gin flat out refusing to consider that vodka could have any place in a cocktail.

Well, then I bought a tiny bottle of vodka and gave it a shot and ended up being quite impressed, the vodka does seem to add something to the balance of this drink.

• 6 cl Tanqueray
  
• 2 cl Smirnoff
  
• 1 cl Lillet Blanc

Stir everything with ice and strain into martini glass - shaking my be James Bonds preferred method, but why bother when stirring keep the drink crystal clear?

Another way at looking at the recipe is: Two parts gin, to one part vodka to one half part dry vermouth. But Mr. Ian Flemming was quite specific and wrote Kina Lillet instead of dry vermouth in Casino Royal where the drink debuts.

Kina Lillet has gone out of production and Lillet Blanc is the closest living cousin.

Fin de Siecle

Having procured a bottle of Martin Miller's gin I looked around for something to test it with and stumbled across the Fin de Siecle cocktail. Apparently created in the 1920'ies in honor of the previous turn of the century.

This cocktail contains Picon, a orange bitter liqueur that is poured into beer in some parts of France for a very refreshing Picon biere.

Without further ado, here it is:

• 4 cl gin - Millers was great
• 2 cl Lillet Blanc
• 1 cl Picon
• 1 dash of orange bitters

Stir the first three ingredient with ice in a mixing glass until your cocktail is very cold. Strain into pretty cocktail glass, add the dash of orange bitters and a twist of orange.

Corpse Reviver II

The morning after has always given rise to alcoholic and non-alcoholic remedies.

Harry Craddock's Corpse Reviver II is by far the most tasty way to rise by the tree that felled you.

But heed his warning:
Four of these taken in swift succession will unrevive the corpse again.

• 3 cl gin
• 3 cl Lillet Blanc
• 3 cl Cointreau
• A dash of absinthe

Shake the first three ingredients with ice, put a maraschino cherry in the bottom of a martini glass and strain cocktail over it. Then add a dash of absinthe and feel like a human being again

20th Century Cocktail

The taste of Art Deco in a cocktail glass, that is how cocktail archaeologist Ted Haigh describes the 20th Century Cocktail.

It's named after the iconic train between New York and Chicago called the 20th Century Limited. In 1938 the trains on that line was streamlined into absolute glory.

Also it was for this train service that the Pullman company invented the red carpet treatment of the passengers.

The train plays a minor part in Alfred Hitchcocks North by Northwest - where the style of the train, of Cary Grant and of Eva Marie Saint comes together. Also you would notice how small martinis were back in the real Mad Men days - it's worth renting.

And then mix this:

• 4,5 cl gin
• 2 cl Lillet Blanc
• 2 cl creme de cacao
• 2 cl strained fresh lemon juice

Shake everything with ice, strain into martini glass and garnish with a lemon twist.