Food & Drink

Vintage World’s Fair Cocktails to Make at Home

Cocktail expert A.J. Rathbun offers recipes for three retro drinks once served atop the Space Needle

By Seattle Mag January 12, 2012

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This article originally appeared in the February 2012 issue of Seattle Magazine.

In 1962, stylish guests dined and drank at The Eye of the Needle (now called SkyCity), while slowly revolving 500 feet above Seattle. While the days of a $6.75 three-course dinner are long gone, you don’t need a time machine to sample the drinks from the Needle’s menu. Seattle magazine’s cocktail expert A.J. Rathbun offers these vintage recipes—from a Trader Vic’s Cocktail Guide—to try at home.

Panorama Punch

Ice cubes

3/4 ounce light Puerto Rican rum

3/4 ounce gin

3/4 ounce Cointreau

1 dash grenadine

Juice of 1/2 lime plus a slice for garnish

Shake all ingredients in a shaker. Pour into 10-ounce Pilsner glass. Fill glass with ice cubes. Serve with a straw and lime slice.

Cloud Buster

Ice cubes

1 1/2 ounces vodka

3 ounces Champagne

Lemon twist, for garnish

Add the vodka and three ice cubes to a Champagne glass. Add the Champagne, stir briefly, garnish with the lemon twist.

Milky Way

Ice cubes

1/2 ounce brandy

1/2 ounce Jamaican rum

1/2 ounce bourbon

6 ounces whole milk or cream

3 drops vanilla

Nutmeg

Shake all ingredients in a shaker. Pour into 10-ounce glass. Fill glass with ice cubes. Dust with grated nutmeg. Serve with a straw.

Vintage menus from the Eye of the Needle, and fair cocktails, redux (from left): Panorama Punch, Cloud Buster and the Milky Way


 

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