An obscure cocktail originally listed in Hyman & Gale, The How & When, the Caprice is primarily relegated to the annals of history. As wine and fine spirits sellers, it’s not unusual that they have concoctions to find ways to embrace different ingredients. It’s hard to say exactly why this cocktail fell out of favor, but it’s safe to say that vermouth and Benedictine probably has made this one a harder sell. Fans of subtle gin drinks though, they may want to read on.
Caprice
The Caprice has a nice honeyed and herbal note with gives a clean and refreshing alternative to a Martini. The flavor profile has a light spice, that also shows off some of the vinous notes from the vermouth and the alpine herbs. The flavors are subtle, round, and have a good citrus backbone from the gin.
Drink Notes & Recommendations
The Caprice is straightforward, light, and easy to make. The only note is the pressure of time on this drink to pull down the vermouth. As a result, there are variations that contain ½ oz of Dry Vermouth. I feel the vermouth adds a nice dimension to this drink, but feel free to play around with the recipe to taste.
- Gin – Although not specified, it would be safe to assume in the time period that this is likely a London Dry gin. We used Beefeater as a result, and found the results pleasant, but the template should be able to handle anything from contemporary gins like Bluecoat or Aviation or classics like Tanqueray or Bombay Sapphire.
- Dry Vermouth – We used our standard Dolin Dry Vermouth here, but your favorite dry vermouth should d0.
- Benedictine – Due to the herbal notes and honeyed sweetness that go into this brandy based liqueur, we don’t recommend swapping this for anything else. Similar to certain other classics, this is both a specific liqueur and a brand recommendation.