The Seelbach Cocktail

Name: The Seelbach Cocktail
Yield: 1 drink
Cuisine: american
Ingredients: 1 ounce bourbon, preferably Old Forester; 1/2 ounce triple sec; 7 dashes Angostura bitters; 7 dashes Peychaud’s bitters; 5 ounces domestic sparkling wine, preferably Korbel Brut, chilled; Orange twist, for garnish

Recipe from Adam Seger

Adapted by Robert Simonson

The Seelbach Cocktail — Ramsay de Give for The New York Times

Rating: 4(130)
Comments: Read comments

When devising a signature drink for the Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, Ky., Adam Seger drew inspiration from the cocktails made with cava and Spanish brandy that he had tasted at a Spanish restaurant. Wishing to create something that would resemble a pre-Prohibition drink, he replaced the brandy with Old Forester, a bourbon with a long heritage in Kentucky, and the cava with Korbel Brut, the sort of sparkling wine that would have been available to a Louisville bartender in the early years of the 20th century. The drink comes across as a mash-up of a manhattan and a Champagne cocktail: refreshing and just peculiar enough to keep you interested. Mr. Seger strongly recommends that all of the ingredients be very cold before being introduced to the glass. —Robert Simonson

Featured in: That Historic Cocktail? Turns Out It’s a Fake

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Ingredients

Yield:1 drink

1ounce bourbon, preferably Old Forester
½ounce triple sec
7dashes Angostura bitters
7dashes Peychaud’s bitters
5ounces domestic sparkling wine, preferably Korbel Brut, chilled
Orange twist, for garnish

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
In a mixing glass three-quarters filled with ice, combine the bourbon, triple sec and bitters. Stir until chilled, about 30 seconds.
Step 2
Strain the mixture into a Champagne flute. Top with the sparkling wine. Rub a long curlicue orange twist around the rim of the cocktail and let it hang off the side of the flute.

Ratings

4 out of 5

130 user ratings

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Comments

Unlikely7 years ago

I doubt that Paul Varga, the CEO of Brown-Forman would have said this. Pappy is the top bourbon produced by his competitor Sazerac at their Buffalo Trace distillery. Since Brown-Forman's top bourbon is Woodford Reserve, that comparison would make a little more sense...

Freyja Balmer7 years ago

This thing is holiday party magic -- I made a batch to kick off Thanksgiving and it was perfect. It's got a kick, a gorgeous color, bubbles, citrus and a little spice. Well-balanced.

Stephanie in Davis7 months ago

Made exactly using Elijah Craig bourbon and Korbel Brut. Family loved it. For my glass, I added a teaspoon of simple syrup and thought it was perfect.

TennD3 years ago

Did not love this but made with Four Roses so maybe that was the issue? Wanted more complexity but it was just a little too bitter on the back end.

TJ5 years ago

7 dashes of bitters seems like too much for one drink. I've seen other places list 1-2. I haven't done it with 7 but thought I'd put this out there for people searching the web.

joe4 years ago

honestly the more bitters the better in this horrible old school cocktail

Stacey4 years ago

I made serval of these today and surprisingly it was very tasty. The amount of bitters is perfect for the amount of sweetness the other ingredients have. Definitely will keep making them. My customers loved them

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