Maxim– Recipe from David Embury’s ‘The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks’

Sweet Martini with 1 to 2 dashes creme de cacao to each drink. Shake.

I always associate this word with either the magazine which kept boredom at bay for me in the late 90’s, and of course the machine gun from the late 1800’s, a weapon which was something of a symbol of British colonialism, in much the same way as redcoats and railroads in Africa and responsible for the subjection of Uganda, Zimbabwe and South Africa during the Boer war.

I wonder how many of the drinks in his book were designed by Embury, or if almost all were drinks he’s stumbled across in bars, because as a lawyer the idea of a drink named after the word for ‘an expression of general truth or principle’ must have been quite appealing, although if taken in quick succession, like most things, this drink could have the damaging power of the aforementioned weapon.

I also wondered when I’d come across the use of cacao in Embury’s book, from memory this is the first, the other chocolate drinks have all come from the Waldorf guide up to this point, and it seems strange that this is the first I’ve come across that pairs with Italian vermouth, as it seems a rather obvious match, especially in a Manhattan. I wonder if its just Manhattan drinkers turning there nose up at this that’s stopped it being a thing.

I really liked this drink, the chocolate works well, and it you keep the proportion down, so you can taste it, but it doesn’t overpower the drink it works really well. I guess if you wanted the flavour but none of the sweetness then chocolate bitters might be a better option.