The Remember the Maine recipe
for your table
Place the coupe in the freezer for ten minutes.
Pour 0.75 cl absinthe into the chilled glass, swirl it until the entire inside is coated, and discard the excess.
Fill a mixing glass three-quarters full with ice and add the rye, sweet red vermouth and cherry brandy.
Stir for 25 to 30 seconds with a bar spoon, until the outside of the mixing glass becomes frosted.
Strain into the rinsed coupe.
Squeeze a lemon zest over the glass so the oil falls onto the drink, and hang it on the rim.
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The story
The cocktail first appeared in print in The Gentleman's Companion in 1939, the drinks book by American writer Charles H. Baker Jr. He wrote that he discovered the drink in Havana during the unrest of the 1933 Cuban Revolution. The name refers to the battle cry 'Remember the Maine, to hell with Spain', which emerged after the American warship USS Maine exploded in Havana harbor in 1898. The explosion contributed to the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. A nearly identical drink, McKinley's Delight, already appeared in the 1935 Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, named after the American president of 1898. The Remember the Maine is now on the official IBA list, in the category The Unforgettables.
The right glass
The IBA specifies a coupe, and that makes sense. This drink goes into the glass without ice, so you want a stem to hold and a bowl that does not lose its chill too quickly. The wide, shallow bowl lets the absinthe aroma linger above the glass, right where your nose is. Choose a coupe of 20 to 24 cl: after stirring, the cocktail comes to about 12 cl and has enough room not to slosh. View our coupe glasses.
RCR Opera Champagne Glass / Coupe 24 cl (6 pieces)
Bormioli Rocco America'20S Champagne Glass / Coupe 22 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 79,90.
The right tools
To make a Remember the Maine, in addition to the glass you need a mixing glass, a bar spoon for stirring, a jigger for precise measuring, a julep strainer and a zester for the twist. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
The strainer that goes with a mixing glass
Glass set (our choice 01) + 5 bar tools together € 145,70.
What do you make a Remember the Maine with?
To make a Remember the Maine, you need whisky and liqueur. A well-known bottle is Martini Riserva Speciale Rubino. On every drink page, you can read the alcohol percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it works well in and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
Many bars use Cherry Heering instead of Luxardo, which makes the drink slightly sweeter and darker. Using bourbon instead of rye makes it rounder and less spicy. If you want a stronger anise flavor, leave a few drops of absinthe in the glass after rinsing. If you like that rinse, also try the Sazerac. A stirred relative made with Irish whiskey and green Chartreuse is the Tipperary, and for a version with cognac and Bénédictine alongside the rye, see the Vieux Carré.
Serving tip
Serve it after dinner, with dark chocolate or a piece of aged cheese. Put the coupe in the freezer: an ice-cold glass keeps the drink at temperature for a few minutes longer. Squeeze the lemon zest high above the glass so the oil falls onto the drink as a thin film.
Good to know
Making a Remember the Maine: the absinthe rinse
Rinsing means coating the glass with absinthe and pouring the rest away. Pour 0.75 cl of absinthe into the chilled coupe, hold the glass at an angle and swirl it until the entire inside is wet. Pour away the excess, or catch it in a small glass for the next round. What remains is an ultra-thin layer that you mainly smell. This keeps the drink balanced: the anise adds length to the whiskey without overpowering the cherries. An absinthe atomizer also works and is more economical; two sprays into the glass are enough.
Which whiskey works best
The IBA specifies rye whiskey, and there is a reason for that. Rye is distilled mainly from rye and tastes drier and spicier than bourbon, with pepper and a slightly bitter finish. You need that sharpness against the sweet vermouth and cherry liqueur, otherwise it becomes a sweet drink. Choose a rye at 45 to 50 percent ABV: at 40 percent, it loses its backbone as the ice melts. If you only have bourbon at home, that works too, but use slightly less cherry brandy, for example 1 cl.
What cherry brandy means here
In old cocktail recipes, cherry brandy means a sweet cherry liqueur, not a dry cherry distillate. The IBA refers to Luxardo's, a dark red liqueur made from Italian Marasca cherries. Cherry Heering from Denmark is the best-known substitute. Kirsch is not a good alternative: it is a clear, dry brandy without sugar, which makes the drink sharp and thin. Maraschino, also from Luxardo, is also clear and tastes more of almonds and flowers than ripe cherries. For this cocktail, you want that dark, sweet fruit as a counterpoint to the rye.
Remember the Maine alongside Manhattan and Sazerac
All three are strong, stirred, made without citrus, and served without ice. The Manhattan sticks to rye, sweet vermouth, and bitters and is the most austere of the three. The Sazerac, made with rye or cognac, also uses an absinthe rinse, but pairs it with sugar and Peychaud's bitters instead of vermouth. Remember the Maine falls somewhere in between: the vermouth of the Manhattan, the absinthe of the Sazerac, and cherry liqueur on top. That makes it the fruitiest of the three. If you know the Manhattan, this is the first variation to try.
Stirring in the mixing glass
A cocktail without juice or egg is stirred, and so is this one. Stirring chills and dilutes without beating air into the drink, keeping it clear and silky smooth. Fill the mixing glass three-quarters full with cold, hard ice cubes and stir for 25 to 30 seconds with a long bar spoon, keeping the rounded side against the wall. This melts in about one-fifth water, enough to tame the alcohol. Shaking makes it cloudy and frothy, which is immediately noticeable in a coupe. You can find a heavy mixing glass with a pouring spout in our mixing glasses.
Remember the Maine for a group
For six glasses, combine 36 cl rye, 13.5 cl red vermouth, and 9 cl cherry brandy in a bottle beforehand. Add 12 cl cold water: that is the dilution stirring would otherwise provide. Refrigerate the bottle for at least three hours and put the coupes in the freezer for half an hour. Just before serving, rinse each coupe with absinthe and pour almost 12 cl from the bottle into each glass. This way, you don't have to stir six times, and every glass is equally cold and equally strong. A squeeze of lemon zest per glass completes it.
Frequently asked questions
What is in a Remember the Maine?
According to the IBA, a Remember the Maine consists of 6 cl rye whiskey, 2.25 cl sweet red vermouth, and 1.5 cl Luxardo cherry brandy, stirred over ice. The glass is rinsed beforehand with 0.75 cl absinthe, which is then discarded. A lemon zest completes it.
Where does the name Remember the Maine come from?
The name refers to the battle cry 'Remember the Maine, to hell with Spain' from 1898. That year, the American battleship USS Maine exploded in the harbor of Havana, contributing to the Spanish-American War. Charles H. Baker Jr. put the cocktail to paper in 1939 and wrote that he had drunk it in Havana.
Can you leave out the absinthe in a Remember the Maine?
You can, but then you miss exactly what makes this drink different from a Manhattan with cherry liqueur. If you don't have absinthe, rinse the glass with a pastis such as Ricard or Pernod. It is sweeter and less potent, but the anise aroma rises above the glass just as well.
Which glass do you use for a Remember the Maine?
A chilled coupe of 20 to 24 cl, as prescribed by the IBA. The drink goes into the glass without ice, so you hold it by the stem and it stays cold longer. The wide bowl allows the anise aroma from the absinthe rinse to emerge fully, even when there is only a thin layer in the glass.
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