072 – White Russian

A 2022 re-discovery of the 1949 ‘White Russian’ cocktail.

What started as a Covid lock-down activity, in the 105-day Sydney second-wave of the Delta-strain in 2021, is now a continuing journey through the cocktail’s of the past, as we once again face a Covid surge in the form of Omicron. This time, the make-at-home cocktail is the well-known ‘White Russian’.

Make your own ‘mix-at-home’ #Locktail the ‘White Russian’.

METHOD – Build in a Double Rocks glass filled with crushed ice (alternative to shake if you wish). Add 60ml of Vodka, 30ml of Kahlua (or other Coffee Liqueur) and for the ‘White Russian’ (as opposed to the ‘Black Russian’) float 30ml of cream on top (or if you prefer a less-creamy version, use milk instead). Another option is to switch the quantities, using a double-shot (60ml) of Coffee Liqueur and single-shot (30ml) of Vodka, if you prefer to hero the coffee liqueur flavour.

HISTORICAL NOTES – If you have been following the previous 71 ‘Locktails’, you are probably sick of hearing about Harry Craddock and his 1930 publication ‘The Savoy Cocktail Book’, the most famous and seminal of all cocktail publications. However even here, part of the story starts with Harry. A number of cocktails were given the inclusion of ‘Russian’ in their titles because of their inclusion of Vodka, setting the scene for these most famous of ‘Russian’ cocktails.

Around the same time, there is a 1939 recipe in a classic Russian cookbook for a drink containing three-parts cream and one-part coffee liqueur, which in Russia at the time was made at 40-percent alcohol and of course it was Vodka based.

The names ‘Black Russian’ and ‘White Russian’ did not appear until 1949, when Belgian Bartender Gustave Tops created them both at the Hotel Metropole in Brussels. It is unclear which was first, if any, and the only substantive difference is the inclusion or exclusion of cream. The ‘Russian’ comes from the inclusion of Vodka rather than any creation in Russia or the USSR.

This cocktail didn’t appear in print until 1965, when a recipe was published in both the Boston Globe and slightly later, the California’s Oakland Tribune, calling for a then available ‘coffee’ version of Southern Comfort, Vodka (Smirnoff at the time) and cream, called of course a ‘White Russian’.

The 1998 cult film ‘The Big Lebowski’ gave the ‘White Russian’ a big uplift in popularity and awareness and drove the cocktail into the repertoires of mixologists around the world.

THE OFFICIAL MIX – The ‘Black Russian’ cocktail appears in the International Bartender Association’s (IBA) ‘Contemporary Classics’ listing, here. The recipe calls for 50ml Vodka and 20ml Coffee Liqueur poured into an Old Fashioned glass on ice and stirred gently. The recipe also mentions the White Russian addition of floated cream.

TASTING NOTES – As you may be coming to know, I am not a fan of cream in cocktails. To be frank, the whole 1960’s to 1990’s love affair with making cocktails ‘creamy’ could happily disappear in my humble and lactose-challenged opinion. The ‘White Russian’ is one of my few exceptions, however creme is still a step too far. Like my coffee, I like a little sweetness and a little milk. Very cold, with plenty of ice, this is very much a refreshing alcoholic iced-coffee and will be popular with anyone who likes the sound of that.

LOCKTAIL CHANGES – My change is light or low-fat milk instead of cream, and also a preference for the swap in quantities (although not reflected in the recipe above), doubling the Kahlua and halving the Vodka, so that the sweet coffee is at the front and strong. Especially for late in the drink, as the ice starts to dilute the flavour and the mix starts to loose flavour if the coffee liqueur isn’t strong.

YOUR LOCKTAIL EXPERIENCE – If you’d rather taste than read, I am progressively building an ingredient list and other sourcing information on this site. I will re-use ingredients where I can (good for my budget too), so that the cost goes down overtime if you are ‘playing at home’.

Let me know what you think.

Cocktails you’d like reinvented.

Recipes you’ve tried and your ‘score’.

This is second cocktail from the 1961-1970 bracket of ‘Locktail’ remixes. Full list in the index.