Brandy Alexander

A Brandy Alexander is a brandy-based dessert cocktail[1][2] consisting of cognac, crème de cacao, and cream, that became popular during the early 20th century.[3] It is a variation of an earlier, gin-based cocktail called simply an Alexander. The cocktail known as Alexander today may contain gin or brandy.[4] Ice cream can be added for a "frozen Brandy Alexander".[5]

For other uses, see Brandy Alexander (disambiguation).

Alexander
IBA official cocktail
TypeCocktail
Base spirit
ServedStraight up: chilled, without ice
Standard garnishSprinkle fresh ground nutmeg on top.
Standard drinkware
Cocktail glass
IBA specified
ingredients†
PreparationPour all ingredients into cocktail shaker filled with ice cubes. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
† Alexander recipe at International Bartenders Association

History

There are many rumours about its origins. Some sources say it was created at the time of the London wedding of Princess Mary and Viscount Lascelles in 1922.[6] Drama critic and Algonquin Round Table member Alexander Woollcott said it was named after him. Other sources say it was named after the Russian tsar Alexander II.[7]

The drink was possibly named after Troy Alexander, a bartender at Rector's, a New York City restaurant, who created the drink in order to serve a white drink at a dinner celebrating Phoebe Snow, a character in a popular advertising campaign in the early 20th century.[8]

John Lennon was introduced to it on March 12, 1974, by Harry Nilsson, on Lennon's so-called "lost weekend". The pair began heckling the Smothers Brothers, and whilst being ejected Lennon allegedly assaulted a waitress.[9] Lennon later said the drinks "tasted like milkshakes".[10]

In film and television
A Brandy Alexander served on the rocks

In the movie Days of Wine and Roses, alcoholic Joe Clay, played by Jack Lemmon, takes Kirsten Arnesen, played by Lee Remick, out on a date. When she explains that she dislikes liquor but likes chocolate, he orders her a Brandy Alexander. This begins Kirsten's descent into alcoholism.[11]

In the 1981 film Tattoo, Bruce Dern takes Maud Adams out for dinner and orders a Brandy Alexander. When she comments that he does not look the Brandy Alexander type, he replies, "I like the foam...it reminds me of the ocean."[12]

In a comedy narrated by Peter Cook, one of the characters works as a headteacher of the Ambassador Academy. It is a gaffe to say «On the rocks with ice», and the headteacher will act as if being a drillsergeant. Also to be known is that Alexander does not include «Kyrysao», and always cream instead.

In the James Gray movie Two Lovers, Michelle (Gwyneth Paltrow) tells Leonard (Joaquin Phoenix) she drinks Brandy Alexanders with her boyfriend Ronald, a rich lawyer. Leonard orders one at a restaurant to impress her, but ruins the effect by mistaking the stirrer for a straw.[11][13]

In print

The character Brandy Alexander in the novel Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk is named after the drink.[14]

Anthony Blanche orders four "Alexandra cocktails" in Evelyn Waugh's novel Brideshead Revisited.[15] Christian Kracht repeats the four Brandy Alexanders motif in his 1995 novel Faserland.[16]

In Kurt Vonnegut's book, Mother Night, the protagonist suspects that an overly flattering article in the Herald Tribune about his neighbor was "written by a pansy full of Brandy Alexanders."[17]

In Amélie Nothomb's book, Hygiene and the Assassin, the main character, Prétextet Tach, only drinks "Alexandras". He refers to himself as the "Mithridates of the Alexandra".

See also

References
  1. "Experience the Taste of Classic Style With 20 Timeless Cocktails". The Spruce Eats.
  2. "17 Delicious Cocktails That Let You Drink Dessert". The Spruce Eats.
  3. Imbibe Magazine, May/June 2010, p. 38
  4. "The Unforgettables | International Bartenders Association". Archived from the original on 9 March 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  5. Buller's Professional Course in Bartending For Home Study. Harvard Common Press. 16 September 1983. ISBN 9780916782337.
  6. Classic Cocktail Club, Milan, Italy.
  7. "National Brandy Alexander day". eatocracy. Archived from the original on 20 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  8. "Behind the Drink: The Brandy Alexander". Liquor.com. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  9. "When John Lennon and Harry Nilsson Got Tossed From the Troubadour for Heckling". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  10. "The John Lennon we did not know". TODAY.com. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  11. Aftab, Kaleem (20 March 2009). "The movie cocktail – what's your poison tonight?". The Independent. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  12. Tattoo (1981) – Quotes, retrieved 29 July 2018
  13. Mason, Ian Garrick (27 April 2009). "Magnetic Suns and Moth Balls: An essay on James Gray's Two Lovers". iangarrickmason.com. Archived from the original on 30 April 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  14. "The Rockford Files". 27 March 1974 – via IMDb.
  15. Waugh, Evelyn (1962) [1945]. "2". Brideshead Revisited. p. 48. ISBN 9780140008210.
  16. Faserland (1995) chapter 7
  17. Vonnegut, Kurt. Mother Night. p. 50.
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