A Short History Lesson.

In 1919, after a temperance movement built up over decades by various Christian and women's movements, the 18th Amendment to the US Federal Constitution was passed.  The National Prohibition Act (also known as the Volstead Act or The Noble Experiment) began a year later in 1920.  

And so the USA began thirteen years as a "dry" nation...well almost, if it weren't for the glorious dawn of the age of speakeasies (or blind pigs).  These mob-run underground drinking saloons were purveyors of the finest bootleg liquor around.  "Milk" companies were set up to truck booze from state to state (who's going to question The White Stuff?) and wineries would barrel grape juice with a warning label stating "contents will ferment if stored in a warm place".

Mobsters such as Al Capone and Lucky Luciano made fortunes supplying speakeasies (Wiki makes a very good point when it states that mobsters were easily identifiable by their fashionable silk suits, expensive jewellery and...wait for it...their guns.  Really??!  Thanks Wikipedia.).

As many began to question the benefit (if any) of prohibition, repeal organisations gathered momentum.  On the 22nd March 1933, President Franklyn Roosevelt signed the Cullen-Harrison Act allowing the sale of wine and 3.2% beer.  Although 1933 is widely quoted as the year of the repeal, Mississippi became the final state to repeal in 1966.  During the ratification of the repeal legislation, Congress devolved a certain amount of authority to each state allowing the likes of the hard-line Southern states to maintain some form of prohibition.

So, there you have it.  A very short history lesson on US Prohibition.  The following cocktail is an example of a prohibition-era drink.  Only in real desperate times would someone mix gin and whisky...

Barbary Coast

20ml Plymouth gin

20ml Cutty Sark blended whisky

20ml Creme de Cacao

20ml double cream

Method: Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Enjoy...!


Come to 99 Bar & Kitchen this Sunday and celebrate the 77th Anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition.