Orange Blossom
Gin and fresh orange juice in equal parts, shaken. The Prohibition drink that hid bathtub gin behind breakfast — and, made with a good gin and a real orange, a bright, simple cocktail that deserves better than its history.
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, orange juice and syrup (if using) to a shaker.
Fill with ice and shake for 10 seconds.
Double strain into the chilled coupe and express an orange peel over the top.
A thoughtful finish
- Fresh orange juice is the whole drink; carton juice tastes of the carton.
- A dash of orange flower water is the old-fashioned touch and suits the name.
- Serve it on the rocks with soda for a long version.
Common mistakes
- Carton orange juice.
- Equal parts with a sweet orange, which gets flabby; two to one keeps the gin forward.
- Stirring.
A few good questions.
What does an Orange Blossom taste like?
Gin and fresh orange — juniper over sweet citrus, light and simple.
Is it a Screwdriver?
A Screwdriver with gin, essentially, and shaken rather than built.
How is it different from a Bronx?
The Bronx adds sweet and dry vermouth.
Why was it popular in Prohibition?
Orange juice hid the taste of bad gin and made the drink look innocent.
Variations
- Bronx — Gin, two vermouths and orange juice.
- Screwdriver — Vodka and orange juice.
- Abbey Cocktail — Gin, Lillet, orange juice and bitters.
- Monkey Gland — Gin, orange juice, grenadine and absinthe.
Where it comes from
c. 1920 · United States
The Orange Blossom is the speakeasy’s most honest drink: equal parts gin and orange juice, invented to make Prohibition gin drinkable and to look like breakfast. It appears in bar books from the 1910s — there is a sweeter pre-war version with sweet vermouth — but it was the 1920s that made it famous, and a generation of Americans learned to drink gin through it. It is essentially a Bronx without the vermouths or a Screwdriver with gin, and the modern bar version uses a two-to-one ratio, fresh juice and a touch of orange flower water or sugar to point it up. Harry Craddock’s Savoy gave it equal parts with a dash of sugar.
Sources
- Harry Craddock, The Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930 (book)
- David Wondrich, Imbibe!, 2015 (book)
- Difford's Guide, Orange Blossom, 2010 (reference)
Strength. About 1.47 US standard drinks at an estimated 18.8% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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