I remember when the Blood and Sand cocktail was first described to me: equal parts scotch, orange juice, sweet vermouth and cherry brandy (sometimes Maraschino liqueur). My face did one of those crinkly things where your chin pulls back into your neck and your mouth turns, ever so unattractively, downward.
“Gross,” I quipped. It sounded like one of those nasty things people made in high school… mixing together literally anything in their parents’ liquor cabinet in a red plastic cup.
But, I rose to the occasion, and gave it a try… and it remains one of my fave whiskey drinks, to this day!
It seems that we don’t know a whole lot about this drink in the breadth of cocktail history. However, in this blurb the late, great Gary Regan suggests that it was named for a 1922 movie, based on the Blood and Sand novel by Vincente Blaco Ibáñez, starring “Latin Lover” Rudolph Valentino portraying a bullfighter.
And, apparently, the drink appeared in Harry Craddock’s 1930 cocktail tome, The Savoy Cocktail Book. So, these dates lead me to believe it must have been created sometime during 1922 – 1930, landing it smack-dab in the middle of Prohibition.
As I did a bit more research, though, I also realized that The Last Word was created in 1915, at the Detroit Athletic Club, and revived by Murray Stenson, a beloved barman at Seattle’s Zig Zag Café about a decade ago. And, check this out… the Last Word is equal parts gin, lime juice, green chartreuse and Maraschino cherry liqueur. Hmmm…
We know that many cocktails are riffs on their predecessors. So, could the Blood & Sand be The Last Word with the spirt, citrus and aromatic modifier (vermouth /chartreuse) swapped out? No one can be sure. And, I imagine that I’m not the first person to draw a line between these two drinks…
All said, though, I do highly recommend that, when it comes to cocktails, don’t judge a “book” by its cover! You might just discover a new recipe to add to your regular cocktail rotation.
Blood & Sand
¾ oz Scotch
¾ oz Sweet Vermouth
¾ oz Fresh Orange Juice
¾ oz Cherry Brandy (or Maraschino liqueur)
Shake with ice. Serve up or over fresh ice. Garnish with a cherry.
Photo credit: Tim Nusog, Liquor.com