Lovum and Leavum

by LeNell Smothers, Posted Feb 3rd 2010 @ 5:00PM

Photo: LeNell Smothers.

I'm still having a blast with Crosby Gaige's "Cocktail Guide and Ladies Companion." Now that I'm all in love and treated like a queen by a most amazing man, my single girlfriends won't let me gripe about anything. No matter what I say, I hear, "Well, at least you've got a great guy." This is usually followed by how they wish they could find one. In essence, their hearts are weary from men who "love 'em and leave 'em."

With Valentine's Day around the corner, I figured I wouldn't get too sappy with cocktails topped with rose petals and Champagne; Gaige's Lovum and Leavum cocktail can be found on page 93 in the chapter "The Old Gin Mill." This chapter also includes classics such as the Pegu Club cocktail made with lime juice, gin, curaçao, orange and Angostura bitters that Ms. Audrey Saunders and company named their bar after.

In the Lovum and Leavum, Gaige calls for Nuyens grenadine which, to my knowledge, is no longer available in the U.S., if not entirely defunct. I found some old advertising from a 1930 issue of the New Yorker claiming the French brand's grenadine to be "ideal for mixed drinks as it has a rare aromatic bouquet that serves to enrich cock-tails." Just look for a grenadine made with real pomegranate and you'll be fine.

Lovum and Leavum

1 jigger dry gin
1/3 jigger Triple Sec
Juice of ½ lime
Dash of grenadine
1 egg white

Shake ingredients vigorously with cracked ice, strain and serve in a glass with a sugar-frosted rim.

Alabama-born LeNell Smothers defines herself first and foremost as a bartender, but she's been called many things -- most recently, the proprietress of Casa Cóctel with partner Demián Camacho Santa Ana. She's owned her own whiskey label, called Red Hook Rye, and has been recognized by her home state as an honorary Colonel. Other interests include gin, sin and men.

Filed Under: Drink Recipes, Drinks, Features
Tags: cocktails, grenadine, lenell smothers, LenellItAll, valentines day, ValentinesDay