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Horse's Neck

The Horse’s Neck cocktail dates back to the late 19th century and describes the alcoholic version of ginger ale. The recipe is very easy to prepare and can be made and served in less than 2 minutes. We show you how to prepare and enjoy the Horse’s Neck Cocktail recipe at home. Discover the recipe now and try it out!

Horse's Neck Cocktail Recipe

  • 5 cl Bourbon Whiskey
  • Ginger Ale
  • 2-4 dashes Angustora Bitters

Step by Step Guide

  1. Fill a long drink glass with ice cubes and pour the bourbon into the glass.
  2. Pour the glass to just before the rim with ginger ale and add the cocktail bitters.
  3. Now just stir gently with a bar spoon and then grit with a lemon zest and serve.
Horses Neck
chris-barkeeper-nation
Recipe by Chris

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The Horse’s Neck Cocktail is a very well-known long drink that is really easy to prepare. First take a large long drink glass and fill it with a few ice cubes. Measure out the whiskey with a jigger and pour it into the glass. Fill the glass up to just below the rim with ginger ale. Now add 2 to 4 dashes of Angustora Bitters to the drink. The more bitters you use, the more tart the cocktail will taste.

Once you have added the bitters to the glass, take a bar spoon or tablespoon and stir the drink gently. Be careful not to stir too quickly or too intensively, otherwise you will lose too much carbonic acid from the ginger ale. Now you can grit the drink with a lemon zest or cocktail cherry and then serve. This is how easy and quick you can prepare the Horse’s Neck cocktail at home.

This is what the Horse's Neck Cocktail tastes like

4.3/5

31 Reviews

The Horse’s Neck Cocktail is a very spicy and tart cocktail. Its taste is rather bitter, tart and alcoholic. If you are looking for sweet or fruity cocktails, the Horse’s Neck Cocktail is not for you. The tart drink is reminiscent of the 1920s, when spirits were only mixed with other ingredients to make them more bearable. So if you want to try a classically tart, spicy and intense cocktail, you should definitely try the Horse’s Neck Cocktail.

Give it that extra kick

Want to make the Horse’s Neck cocktail but give it an extra kick? Then we have something for you! Just swap ginger ale for ginger beer. The spicy, intense flavour of ginger beer gives it a particularly spicy note and makes the long drink look completely different. Try the drink once with ginger ale and then with ginger beer and then decide which variant you like best. This swap of fillers is definitely worth a try!

The journey begins in the 19th century

The Horse’s Neck Cocktail is really a very classic mixed drink. This cocktail is said to have been prepared for the first time as early as the late 19th century. At that time, not so much importance was attached to the ingredients used. At that time, it didn’t matter which whisky was used in the preparation: Bourbon or rye whiskey were the preferred choice. With only two ingredients, the long drink quickly became one of the most popular cocktails of its time.

It was only later that the long drink experienced its renaissance and became increasingly popular with bartenders. In various cocktail bars, the Horse’s Neck Cocktail was added to the menus. The recipe remained largely the same, but from now on the focus was on a high-quality bourbon whiskey. In addition, cocktail bitters were added to the glass to give the cocktail further tart notes. So what are you waiting for? Try the Horse’s Neck cocktail yourself and let its unique taste convince you!

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