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The Olympic is a three-ingredient drink dominated by the fruity, sweet, and sometimes bitter taste of oranges, featuring brandy, orange curaçao, and orange juice. This is another variation of the old classic Sidecar cocktail, swapping out the tart of a lemon for the sweetness of an orange. Of course, this blends with brandy in an entirely unique way, highlighting some of its bold and fruity notes.
Bar Tools
- Jigger
- Shaker
- Peeler
To Serve: Coupe glass
Ingredients (One Serving)
- 1 oz. cognac
- 1 oz. orange curaçao liqueur
- 1 oz. fresh squeezed orange juice
How to Make
Pour your ingredients into a shaker with ice, shake well, and then strain into a chilled glass.
Nutritional Facts and ABV
- ABV (alcohol by volume): 20.5%
- Calories: 139 calories
- Total carbohydrates: 7.6 grams
- Total added sugar: 8.2 grams
History
Everybody knows the story of the Titanic, once the world’s largest ship that tragically sank on its maiden voyage. Well, the RMS Olympic was the less famous sister ship, which traveled the seas successfully for years in the same era. Enter the Olympic Cocktail, which was reportedly first published in 1930s The Savoy Cocktail Book in honor of the 882-foot-long British ocean liner. That original recipe called for equal parts of its three ingredients. Nowadays, you may come across an Olympic recipe dominated by brandy in favor of smaller contributions from orange juice and orange curaçao, and some fans of the drink have come to prefer it that way. But in the spirit of the Olympic’s cocktail roots, keep that equal thirds ratio in mind.
FAQ
Can I use any cognac for this drink?
Not all brandy is cognac. But all cognac is brandy. Keep that in mind when sifting through recipes like The Olympic, hopefully avoiding confusion when you see one recipe that asks for brandy while another calls for cognac.
Hennessy, Grand Marnier or Grosperrin (if you’re feeling spendy) are all good cognac choices for the Olympic.
What’s the difference between brandy and cognac?
Brandy is technically defined as a spirit made from distilling any type of fermented fruit, and most have a fruity flavor to them. Cognac, however, must come from the Cognac region of France along with a number of other specifications, like having a base of white grapes rather than the generic “fermented fruit,” and must undergo its two rounds of distillation between October 1 and March 31.
