Legendary Bitters Return to the Mix

The name Jerry Thomas is to cocktails what Caesar Cardini is to salad. Thomas’ cocktail book from 1862 mentioned Bogart’s Bitters (sometimes rendered as Boker’s Bitters). The brand disappeared during Prohibition, and the recipe was lost. But Stephan Berg and Alexander Hauck, partners in The Bitter Truth, a global company based in Germany that sells cocktail ingredients, has a new offering based on the company’s analysis of a discovered bottle of the legendary bitters. The flavors are intense, dark and spicy, and the bitters are bottled with a vintage replica label in what is called a “lady leg” bottle. Use them sparingly in assorted cocktails: Bogart’s Bitters, The Bitter Truth, the-bitter-truth.com, sold at Astor Wines and Spirits, $34.99, 399 Lafayette St. (East Fourth Street), 212-674-7500, astorwines.com.

Posted 9:03 p.m. Mar 13, 2018 — Updated 9:03 p.m. Mar 13, 2018

By

FLORENCE FABRICANT

, New York Times

The name Jerry Thomas is to cocktails what Caesar Cardini is to salad. Thomas’ cocktail book from 1862 mentioned Bogart’s Bitters (sometimes rendered as Boker’s Bitters). The brand disappeared during Prohibition, and the recipe was lost. But Stephan Berg and Alexander Hauck, partners in The Bitter Truth, a global company based in Germany that sells cocktail ingredients, has a new offering based on the company’s analysis of a discovered bottle of the legendary bitters. The flavors are intense, dark and spicy, and the bitters are bottled with a vintage replica label in what is called a “lady leg” bottle. Use them sparingly in assorted cocktails: Bogart’s Bitters, The Bitter Truth, the-bitter-truth.com, sold at Astor Wines and Spirits, $34.99, 399 Lafayette St. (East Fourth Street), 212-674-7500, astorwines.com.

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