Jasmine
Gin, lemon, Campari and orange liqueur, shaken. Paul Harrington's 1990 Californian drink that tastes uncannily of pink grapefruit — and started the modern Campari sour.
Built to the standard modern spec; not yet tested in our kitchen. How we test.
The recipe.
Scaling adjusts quantities only. Prepare shaken drinks in individual portions.
Let’s make a good drink.
Chill a coupe.
Add the gin, lemon juice, Campari and orange liqueur to a shaker.
Fill with ice and shake hard for 10 to 12 seconds.
Double strain into the chilled coupe and garnish with a lemon twist.
A thoughtful finish
- A quarter-ounce each of Campari and Cointreau is Harrington's balance; more Campari and it becomes a bitter sour, more Cointreau and it goes sweet.
- Fresh lemon; the grapefruit illusion depends on it.
- A juniper-forward gin gives the drink its structure.
Common mistakes
- Grapefruit juice, because it tastes of grapefruit; the drink is the illusion.
- Too much Campari.
- A sweet triple sec.
A few good questions.
Why does it taste of grapefruit?
Campari's bitter orange, lemon's acid and Cointreau's sweet orange combine into something the palate reads as pink grapefruit. There is none in the drink.
Who is Paul Harrington?
A Bay Area bartender and author of the 1998 Cocktail: The Drinks Bible, one of the first books of the craft revival.
How is it related to the Pegu Club?
Same frame — gin, citrus, orange liqueur — with Campari in place of the Pegu's bitters.
Is it sweet?
No; it is tart and lightly bitter. The orange liqueur is a seasoning.
Variations
- Pegu Club — Gin, curaçao, lime and two bitters.
- Siesta — Tequila, Campari, lime and grapefruit.
- Enzoni — Gin, Campari, lemon and grapes.
- White Lady — Gin, orange liqueur and lemon.
Where it comes from
c. 1990 · Emeryville, California · Paul Harrington · Townhouse Bar and Grill
Paul Harrington created the Jasmine around 1990 at the Townhouse in Emeryville, across the bay from San Francisco, for a regular named Matt Jasmin — the spelling drifted — who wanted something new; he reached for gin, lemon, Campari and Cointreau and found that together they tasted of pink grapefruit, though none is in the glass. Harrington printed it in Cocktail: The Drinks Bible for the 21st Century in 1998, one of the first books of the revival, and it spread from there. It is a Pegu Club with Campari in place of bitters, and the grapefruit effect is real.
Sources
- Paul Harrington, Cocktail: The Drinks Bible for the 21st Century, 1998 (book)
- Robert Simonson, A Proper Drink, 2016 (book)
- Difford's Guide, Jasmine, 2015 (reference)
Strength. About 1.37 US standard drinks at an estimated 23.9% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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