Dearest Zelda: A Modern Spin on a Classic Prohibition Cocktail

Thrillist Video

In honor of Amazon’s new original series, Z: The Beginning of Everything, based on the colorful life of Zelda Fitzgerald, we decided to reimagine some of the classic cocktails imbibed during the glitz and glamor of the Jazz Age. It was during this time that Zelda met F. Scott and their tumultuous relationship took flight. We tasked prohibition-cocktail-expert bartender Lucinda Sterling to craft three cocktails worthy of this era, and the literary lovebirds who loved to drink. Below is a video and recipe for the original cocktail Dearest Zelda, as an ode to her spicy side.

Dearest Zelda

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 ounce brandy
  • 1 ounce moonshine
  • 1/2 ounce buttermilk
  • 1 ounce Torani butter pecan syrup
  • Cayenne pepper on top
DIRECTIONS:
1. Use a jigger to measure and add ingredients into a small shaker tin in the following order: butter pecan syrup, brandy, moonshine, buttermilk
2. Add ice to a large shaker tin
3. Pour ingredients from smaller shaker into the larger shaker
4. Set smaller shaker aside
5. Create a tight seal and shake until the ice cracks
6. Place a Hawthorn shaker onto the large tin, close the gate, and carefully but quickly pour the ingredients from the shaker into a coupe glass
7. As a garnish, sprinkle a small amount of cayenne pepper on top of the contents of the coupe