Savoy Cocktail of the Week: The Leap-Frog & The Leap Year

In preparation for the upcoming Leap Year of 2012, I decided to sample two leaping cocktails: the Leap-Frog (because it just sounds fun) and the Leap Year, because… because.

The Leap-Frog Cocktail

1 Lump of Ice
The Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1 Glass Gin
1 Split of Ginger Ale

Serve in a long tumbler.

leapzine.com

Leap Year Cocktail

1 Dash Lemon Juice
2/3 Gin
1/6 Grand Marnier
1/6 Italian Vermouth

Shake well and serve in cocktail glass. Squeeze lemon peel on top.

“This Cocktail was created by Harry Craddock, for the Leap Year celebrations at the Savoy Hotel, London, on February 29th, 1928. It is said to have been responsible for more proposals than any other cocktail that has ever been mixed.”

This declaration from The Savoy Cocktail Book refers to the folk tradition that women may make proposals of marriage to men either during Leap Years or, more specifically, on Leap Day. You might recall that Amy Adam’s movie from a while back. Apparently if a Norwegian man refuses a Leap Day proposal, he owes the lady twelve pairs of gloves.

At any rate, the Leap Year Cocktail is quite festive in flavor. It’s on the sweet side, definitely something you want well shaken/chilled, in small servings so as to keep the beverage cold throughout imbibing. I can definitely see myself serving it up at a raucously joyful gathering. Would I, in the future, sip it before dinner? Probably not.

As for the Leap-Frog? I utterly loved it. I always enjoy a nice cocktail topped off with ginger ale (see my delight at the Bull-dog cocktail, also here). The Leap-Frog was zippy, light, refreshing and reminds me of a Gimblet (not Gimlet) with lemon instead of lime—only better due to the ginger ale (the Gimblet calls for the addition of soda water to the gin and lime). I think I would recommend the Leap-Frog with spicy food; it would be nice with Thai. It is also delightful, period.

Next up:

Little Devil Cocktail

1/6 Lemon Juice
1/6 Cointreau
1/3 Bacardi Rum
1/3 Dry Gin

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.