Fogcutter

Name: Fogcutter
Yield: 1 cocktail
Cuisine: Tiki
Ingredients: 2 oz light [Puerto Rican rum](/library/puerto-rican-rum) ([Bacardi](/library/bacardi) Superior or Don Q Cristal); 1 oz brandy (cognac or American); 0.5 oz gin; 2 oz fresh lemon juice; 1 oz fresh orange juice; 0.5 oz [orgeat](/library/orgeat); 0.5 oz Amontillado or sweet sherry (float)

citrus tropical complex

Trader Vic’s most ambitious creation: rum, gin, and brandy in the same glass, balanced with citrus and orgeat, finished with a sherry float. Sounds chaotic. Tastes inevitable.

Fogcutter cocktail in a tall Collins glass over crushed ice with a sherry float and mint sprig, lit by warm tungsten light in the Forbidden Altar bar

The History

A Trader Vic original from the 1940s. The name refers to the high-proof nature of the build—Vic himself reportedly said ‘after two of these, you won’t even see the fog, let alone cut it.’ It was a fixture on the original Trader Vic’s menu and remains one of his most technically demanding creations.

Servings

Ingredients

2 oz light Puerto Rican rum (Bacardi Superior or Don Q Cristal)
1 oz brandy (cognac or American)
0.5 oz gin
2 oz fresh lemon juice
1 oz fresh orange juice
0.5 oz orgeat
0.5 oz Amontillado or sweet sherry (float)

Directions

Add all ingredients except the sherry to a shaker with ice.

Shake until well-chilled, about 12 seconds.

Strain into a chilled Collins glass filled with crushed ice.

Float the sherry over the back of a bar spoon.

Garnish with a mint sprig.