Riding Club Cocktail

Modern American Drinks by George J. Kappeler (1895, p.42) — George J. Kappeler 1895

1. Fill a mixing-glass half-full with fine ice.
2. Add the Angostura bitters, acid phosphate, and calasaya.
3. Mix and strain into a cocktail glass.

Nose

Bitter aromatic bark, spice, and a faint mineral edge lead the nose.

Palate

The drink is taut, bitter, and pointed, with acid phosphate tightening the already tonic-like calasaya base into a bracing aperitif line.

Finish

The finish is dry, bitter, and persistent.

Summary

A brisk acidulated bitter liqueur cocktail from the medicinal-aperitif fringe of the era.

This is another useful acid-phosphate marker, showing that these late-century acidulants were not confined to whiskey-vermouth drinks but could also sharpen bitter tonic liqueur cocktails.

The acid phosphate is functional rather than decorative. It alters the drink's line and makes the calasaya feel more vivid and less heavy.

The Cocktail Book a Sideboard Manual for Gentlemen (1901, p.35)

1. Fill a mixing glass with ice and add the ingredients.
2. Mix and strain into a cocktail glass.

Ice: Ice

This is another strong sign that acid phosphate had crossed into private-house cocktail experimentation well before later modern rediscovery.

The drink is still a classic stirred aromatic despite the soda-fountain ingredient.

The Gorham Cocktail Book by Gorham Mfg. Company (1905, p.37) — Gorham 1905

1. Stir the Angostura bitters, acid phosphate, and Calisaya with fine ice.
2. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Ice: Fine ice

Nose

Bitter bark and spice dominate the aroma.

Palate

This is exactly the sort of small but revealing aperitif branch we want to preserve, because it shows acid phosphate continuing to operate inside the bitter-cordial lane.

Finish

The finish is dry, bitter, and appetite-sharpening.

Summary

A tiny Calisaya aperitif from the acidulated bitter branch.