Classics
The New York Sour: A Whiskey Sour with a Red Wine Float
The New York Sour: rye or bourbon, lemon, sugar, egg white and a float of red wine. Its surprising Chicago history and how to get the float right.
Cocktail historian and writer
Margot Ellery
Margot writes about classic cocktails and the bars that made them, from Manhattan hotel lounges to the old bar manuals she collects.
Portrait: Fira Fatul / Pexels
Margot Ellery is a New York based drinks writer who has spent the better part of fifteen years writing about cocktails, bartenders and the history of American bars. She grew up in upstate New York, studied history and worked in publishing before drinks took over.
Her particular interest is where recipes come from: the bartenders, books and hotels behind the classics, and the gap between the legend and what the evidence actually shows. Her shelves hold a growing collection of old bar guides, from reprints of Jerry Thomas to early twentieth century hotel manuals, and she is always happy to explain why a recipe credit matters.
At Pleiades she writes most of our classic cocktail histories and recipes. When she is not reading old menus she can usually be found at a quiet hotel bar, ordering a Hanky Panky and asking the bartender what they think of it.
Articles by Margot
Classics
The Hemingway Daiquiri: Havana, Maraschino and Grapefruit
The Hemingway Daiquiri, created at El Floridita in Havana by Constantino Ribalaigua: rum, lime, grapefruit and maraschino. History, recipe and tips.
Classics
The Singapore Sling: Raffles, the Long Bar and a Tangled Recipe
The story of the Singapore Sling, credited to Ngiam Tong Boon at the Raffles Hotel Long Bar, why its original recipe is disputed and a balanced recipe.
Classics
The Vesper: Ian Fleming's Martini and How to Make It Today
The Vesper martini from Ian Fleming's Casino Royale: gin, vodka and Kina Lillet. Its history, what to use now that Kina Lillet is gone, and a balanced recipe.
Classics
The Penicillin: How a Modern Classic Was Born at Milk & Honey
The Penicillin cocktail, created by Sam Ross at Milk & Honey in 2005: blended Scotch, lemon, honey-ginger syrup and an Islay float. Recipe and tips.
Classics
The Jack Rose: America's Apple Brandy Classic
The Jack Rose cocktail: apple brandy, lemon and real pomegranate grenadine. Its history, Hemingway connection, recipe and how to make proper grenadine.
Classics
From Martinez to Dry Martini: The Theoretical Evolution of a Classic
How the Manhattan and the Martinez evolved into the dry martini: Jerry Thomas, O.H. Byron, Frank Newman, vermouth ratios and recipes for each stage.
Classics
The Hanky Panky and Ada Coleman of the Savoy's American Bar
The story of Ada Coleman, head bartender of the Savoy's American Bar, and her Hanky Panky: gin, sweet vermouth and Fernet-Branca, with recipe and tips.
Technique
Clarified Milk Punch: The 18th Century Technique Bartenders Rediscovered
How clarified milk punch works, where it came from, and a reliable home method with step by step instructions, ratios and troubleshooting.
Classics
The Vieux Carré: New Orleans in a Glass
The Vieux Carré recipe and its history at the Hotel Monteleone in New Orleans: rye, cognac, sweet vermouth, Bénédictine and two kinds of bitters.
Classics
The Old Fashioned: History, Proportions and How to Make It Properly
How to make a balanced Old Fashioned: whiskey choice, sugar, bitters, dilution and garnish, plus the history of the original cocktail and common mistakes.
Bar Culture
Bar Pleiades at The Surrey: A Short History of an Upper East Side Cocktail Lounge
The story of Bar Pleiades, the black and white cocktail lounge inside The Surrey on East 76th Street: its design, its menu chapters, its bartenders and why it closed.