Flying Scotsman
Named after the famous locomotive, this stirred cocktail combines Scotch with sweet vermouth and bitters
- 1½ ozscotch whisky
- 1 ozsweet vermouth
- ¼ ozsimple syrup
- 2 dashesangostura bitters
- lemon twistgarnish
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The Flying Scotsman cocktail takes its name from the iconic LNER Class A1 steam locomotive that ran the London King's Cross to Edinburgh Waverley express route. Built at Doncaster Works in 1923, the Flying Scotsman became the most celebrated steam engine in the world when it achieved a documented speed of 100 mph in 1934 — the first locomotive officially certified to reach this milestone. The non-stop London to Edinburgh rail service had been operating since 1862, with successive generations of faster engines progressively reducing the journey time. A cocktail honoring this engineering marvel naturally calls for Scotch whisky — the spirit of Edinburgh and the Scottish Highlands — as its base, typically combined with sweet vermouth and bitters in a spirit-forward stirred style. Like the train it commemorates, it is a precisely engineered, elegant creation that connects two proud national traditions.
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