The Guillotine Cocktail and Marie Antoinette

Your cocktail calendar entry for: October
16
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October 16, 1793 was the day Marie Antoinette got her head lopped off during the Reign of Terror phase of the French Revolution.  The guillotine, at one time dubbed the “National Razor” of France, was the tool of choice for the task.  The perfect Drink of the Day exists to pay tribute to this event, so today we’ll explore the Guillotine cocktail and Marie Antionette.

Marie Antoinette entered the world as Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna.  She was born into privilege as a daughter of Emperor Francis I of Austria.  When she was 14 she got married to Louis-Auguste, who was the upcoming heir to the French throne.   Four years later she became queen when her husband ascended to the throne and became Louis XVI.

Marie was crowned queen in 1774 and was soon known for her extravagance.  Her husband Louis was thrifty, indecisive, and preferred to be alone, but Marie Antoinette was extravagant and craved the social whirlwind.  Louis would go to bed around 11 PM while Marie was just getting the party started.  She bought diamond jewelry that cost as much as a Paris mansion, gambled wildly and sported towering bouffant hairdos.  Fun times.

The French Revolution

The royal couple was isolated in the luxury of Versailles and were oblivious to the plight of their subjects.  Failed harvests had made the price of grain skyrocket, mobs rioted and taxes were crushing.  Meanwhile, Marie Antoinette’s spending on creating her own private domain at Versailles made for many jealous feelings amongst the court.

When the French Revolution began in 1789 Louis XVI and Marie Antionette were not the most popular folks.  In 1792 the First French Republic was formed, and Louis was relieved of his head at the beginning of 1793.  On October 14 of that year Marie was put on trial by the Revolutionary Tribunal.  Two days later it was her turn for the guillotine.

The guillotine itself is best known for its use in France, but it wasn’t invented there.  Beheading was a common means of execution in Europe at that time.  It’s messy, of course, but does facilitate sticking the head on a pike for display.   The guillotine mechanism itself was invented with the intention of making the execution less painful and more efficient than using an axe or sword, which depended on operator skill and often required multiple whacks.

The Guillotine Cocktail

Moving on to the Drink of the Day, the Guillotine cocktail itself is far less messy than a beheading and far less threatening to your health.  Interestingly, recipes for a drink by this name are all over the map, sometimes even calling for ingredients like Cachaca or Butterscotch Schnapps.  Go figure.

We rely upon a recipe developed by Franky Marshall at the Brooklyn cocktail bar Le Budoir.  This drink has several things going for it, not the least of which is the bar’s obvious reference to Marie Antoinette, Marshall’s history of being part of the opening teams at both the Clover Club and Dead Rabbit, and the fact that it’s mighty tasty.

The Guillotine’s ingredients are hardly all French.  After all it’s Scotch and mezcal based.  But at least Giffard makes an excellent banana liqueur.

Guillotine cocktail

Guillotine Cocktail

Many drinks by the name Guillotine exist, but we chose a version developed by Franky Marshall at the Brooklyn cocktail bar Le Boudoir. We reached out to Ms. Franky to get her backstory. She noted:
“The bones, if you will, came about when I was working at Holiday Cocktail Lounge, and a guest asked for an off piste scotch-based cocktail.
Then when i was developing the menu for Le Boudoir, I decided to revisit the Scotch, mezcal, honey, lemon, mint drink that I'd made at Holiday. That version didn't quite work for Le Boudoir, so I took out the citrus and mint, and made a stirred and slightly more boozy drink that became the Guillotine.  It was a big hit, and we sold many upon many. One guest referred to it as ‘a most elegant kick in the face,’ which is a great way to describe it.  I also love the fact that you can change the scotch and mezcal to get a completely different flavor profile depending on the brands/expressions you choose.”
Ideally, this drink is served in a snifter. Unfortunately, at photo time we found ourselves fresh out of them at our World Headquarters.
5 from 2 votes

Equipment

Ingredients
  

  • 1 oz Mezcal
  • ¾ oz Scotch Whisky Use a blended Scotch here, but feel free to experiment.
  • ¼ oz Banana Liqueur
  • ¼ oz honey syrup Equal parts honey and water to make syrup.
  • Garnish: lemon twist

Instructions
 

  • Add liquid ingredients to your trusty mixing glass.
  • Add ice and stir to chill.
  • Strain into snifter over two ice cubes.
  • Express lemon twist over drink and discard.
  • Drink.
  • Keep your head attached.
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3 Comments. Leave new

  • whoah this blog is wonderful i really like reading your articles. Keep up the great paintings! You realize, a lot of people are hunting round for this info, you could help them greatly.

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  • I have read so many posts about the blogger lovers however this post is really a good piece of writing, keep it up

    Reply
  • MadMan25
    May 20, 2023

    5 stars
    Awesome recipe. A single dash of mole bitters adds a subtle chocolate undertone to the smoky banana honey.

    Reply

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