Cocktail & Other Recipes By Spirit Gin Cocktails

Marguerite

By
Liquor.com
Liquor.com

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Updated 03/14/23
Marguerite cocktail in Nick & Nora glass with thick twist of lemon peel as garnish, placed on dark marble background

Liquor.com / Tim Nusog

The Martini is an iconic cocktail, but its entrance to the cocktail scene was preceded by several important drinks, including the Martinez, which calls for sweet vermouth, and the lesser-known Marguerite.

The earliest written mention of the Marguerite dates to 1900, when the recipe appeared in Harry Johnson’s New and Improved Bartender’s Manual. The original recipe called for equal parts Plymouth gin and French (dry) vermouth, plus orange bitters and a dash of anisette, a sweet anise-flavored liqueur. It didn’t take long for subsequent versions to pop up, and by 1904 the anisette had been dropped. This tweak resulted in a drier drink and put us one step closer to the Dry Martini as we know it today.

This recipe comes from bartending legend Dale DeGroff, who sticks to the preferred formula of Plymouth gin, dry vermouth, and orange bitters. Plymouth gin, which is composed of seven botanicals, including orange peels and green cardamom, is an important component of the cocktail. Falling between Old Tom, a sweeter style of gin called for in the Martinez, and bone-dry London dry gin, Plymouth is soft and citrusy with a subtle juniper note. Its character complements the vermouth and pairs deftly with the orange bitters, allowing all three ingredients to shine.

The next time you’re craving a gin cocktail, try stirring up the Marguerite. It hits all the familiar notes of a Martini, and it’s still plenty stiff, but it provides a softer drinking experience from start to finish.

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce Plymouth gin

  • 1 ounce Noilly Prat dry vermouth

  • 1 dash Regan’s Orange Bitters No. 6

  • Garnish: lemon twist

Steps

  1. Add all ingredients into a mixing glass with ice and stir until well-chilled.

  2. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

  3. Garnish with a lemon twist.

How Does a Marguerite Differ From a Martini?

As bartenders have begun to more commonly include orange bitters in Martini orders, the difference between a Marguerite and Martini is mostly a matter of proportions. While Martinis can often skew from 3:1 to 5:1 spirit-to-vermouth, depending on the desired dryness, the Marguerite uses equal parts of each. In practice, this makes the Marguerite more functionally equivalent to a 50/50 Martini than other modern formulations.

What is Plymouth Gin?

Plymouth gin is a style of gin that is only made by a single producer, the Plymouth Gin Distillery, in Plymouth, England. While it still offers a backbone of juniper, Plymouth is generally considered to have a softer and more citrus-forward profile than London Dry styles of gin. Historically, Plymouth gin was also required to be created within a legally protected geographical indication (PGI). This stipulated, among other conditions, that the gin must be created within the city of Plymouth, in contrast to London Dry-style gins, which can be produced anywhere. Though parent company Pernod Ricard allowed the PGI designation to lapse in 2014, the distillery location and gin remain the same.