The classic Doctor Cocktail is all about showcasing the hard to describe yet impossible to mistake "hogo" flavor present in some rums. The word "hogo" is derived from the French term "haut gaut" (translated "high taste") which was an 18th century term used to describe the funky flavor of wild game that had been hung to age. In the rum world, hogo is used to describe the funky and slightly sulphury quality that can be present in alcohol distilled from sugar. Pirates were assuredly drinking rum chock full of hogo, but most modern rum producers have figured out ways to minimize or eliminate hogo from their products. Rum and cocktail enthusiasts, however, have embraced hogo in the same way that scotch lovers covet medicinal flavors and cognac drinkers seek out "rancio." And, when a rum with hogo is paired lime and sugar, the drink becomes pleasantly unique rather than overpowering.
The Doctor Cocktail employs two sources of hogo. First, it uses super funky Jamaican rum. On top of the rum, it uses uses Swedish Punsch, which is made with Batavia-Arack (an Asian liquor distilled from sugar cane and fermented rice) and flavored with rum, sugar and spices. The sugar from the punsch and lime juice make the good Doctor a very sippable drink, like a classic daiquiri turned up to 11.
The Doctor Cocktail
Victor Bergeron (aka Trader Vic)*
As printed in Ted Haigh's Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails (2009)
- 2 oz. Jamaican Rum (I used Smith & Cross)
- 1 oz. Swedish Punsch (I used Kronan)
- 1 oz. Fresh Lime Juice
Add ingredients to cocktail shaker full of ice. Shake vigorously and strain into chilled coupe glass. Garnish with lime twist.
*Although I like the above recipe the best, there are several other variations. Here are a couple of them:
- Frank Meier (Artistry of Mixing Drinks, 1936) - equal parts rum and punsch with a teaspoon each of orange and lemon juices.
- Harry McElhone (Bar Flies & Cocktails, 1927) - equal parts punsch, limejuice and lemon juice.
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