Cocktails have many names. Some just refer to the ingredients, such as gin and tonic, while others, such as Manhattan, reflect where the drink is popular. There are also drinks named after celebrities or other real people. Margaritas and Bloody Marys are good examples. Some of these drinks have dark origins that make them more fascinating than others. Here are drinks named after real people.
Bellini
Bellini is named after the famous Renaissance painter Giovanni Bellini, who created works such as Agony in the Garden and The Blood of the Redeemer. However, Giovanni Bellini did not invent the summer drink. He was also not even alive when this drink was made. The cocktail was invented by a man named Giuseppe Cipriani.
Cipriani founded Harry’s Bar in Venice, Italy and decided to add white peach puree to prosecco in the 1930′-1940′s. Comparing the pinkish color of this new drink to the hue found in some of Bellini’s most famous paintings, he named his humble cocktail after the master artist. Bellini is therefore among the drinks named after real people.
Dom Pérignon
The Benedictine monk Dom Pérignon is said to be responsible for creating the champagne method of making sparkling wines. But this is just one of the many legends associated with the drink. However, he was integral to improving the production process and one of his real achievements as cellar master at a monastery in France is that he successfully blended grapes to overcome imperfections in wine quality. The exaggerated legend of Dom Pérignon is largely thought to stem from the claims of Dom Grossard, the last treasurer of the Pérignon abbey in the years following the French Revolution.
Dubonnet
The chemist Joseph Dubonnet is said to have been looking for a tasty way to give quinine (found in the cinchona tree) to French legionaries in North Africa to fight malaria. But Kim Walker and Mark Nesbitt, authors of Just the Tonic, think he was looking for a medicinal tonic in general, not specifically against malaria. Either way, in 1846 he found the perfect concoction: a mixture of wine, herbs, spices and the right amount of quinine.
Dubonnet is said to be Queen Elizabeth II’s favorite. If you want to drink it in the royal style, combine two ounces of Dubonnet with one ounce of gin, add ice and a slice of lemon and stir until chilled.
The Charlie Chaplin
It seems unlikely that the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York would name a drink after someone referred to as “The Tramp”. But they made an exception for the great comedian and filmmaker Charlie Chaplin. Among the drinks named after real people, The Charlie Chaplin consists of equal parts Sloe gin, lemon juice and apricot liqueur.
The Charlie Chaplin gets its attractive ruby red color from Sloe gin, which is made by infusing ripe wild plum fruit, similar to plums, with sugar and ordinary gin. The combination of Sloe gin and apricot brandy is slightly sweet. There is no information on whether Chaplin was a fan of the eponymous drink.
The Arnold Palmer
With a career spanning over 60 years, the famous American golfer Arnold Palmer has won 62 PGA Tour titles. Arnold’s wife was making too much iced tea and asked him to make a large pitcher to add some lemonade. After getting the proportions right, he found it so enjoyable that he took it with him when he played golf. One hot summer day he was building a golf course in Palm Springs. At lunch, he asked the waiter for a quarter lemonade and iced tea. When the waiter went to a nearby table, the customer asked for an “Arnold Palmer” and then explained “what he ordered”.
Today, the Arizona Beverage Company launches the officially licensed Arnold Palmers line in a variety of flavors, including green tea and diet versions.
Margarita
Everyone knows that margaritas contain tequila, orange liqueur and lime, but how the drink got its name is disputed. According to one story, a Mexican restaurant owner made it in 1947 or ’48 for a former Ziegfeld showgirl named Marjorie King, who was allergic to all liquors except tequila. Or you can believe the version that shows Texas socialite Margaret Sames as the brains behind the drink. There are even versions that claim actress Rita Hayworth (first name Margarita), who was said to have gotten drunk while performing in Tijuana in the 1930s, gave the drink its name.
Bloody Mary
Consisting of vodka, tomato juice and extra toppings, the Bloody Mary is said to have been put together by a French bartender named Fernand Petiot, who worked at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris in the early 1920s. When Vincent Astor, owner of the St. Regis hotel, brought Petiot to New York in 1933, the name was considered too vulgar for the American public. Therefore, the name was changed to Red Snapper, which was considered more socially appropriate. According to some, there was no vodka in the US at the time, so the drink was made with gin.
It is unclear when it was mixed with vodka again and why it is known as Bloody Mary in the United States. Some attribute the drink’s name to Queen Mary I of England. But in a 1966 interview with Petiot, Petiot claims it was suggested by an American entertainer named Roy Barton because it “reminded him of the Bucket of Blood, a club he once worked at in Chicago”. Six years later, someone claiming to be Petiot’s stepson told Barton that he reminded him of the Bucket of Blood and that “he had a daughter named Mary”. Combine the two and the name Bloody Mary emerges.
