Godfather Cocktail

A great cocktail for lovers of Scotch Whiskey, the Godfather opens up a good Scotch with a bit of Amaretto. Before you say it, no, this won't ruin an otherwise good Scotch. It's simply just a different way to enjoy a spirit that you already like.

Since Scotch can have such a wide variety of flavour profiles, this recipe likely won't work with every Scotch out there. To that end, it may be worthwhile adjusting the Amaretto ratio to suit taste and style of Scotch. To that end, a lot of recipes for this cocktail call specifically for a smokey Scotch. For smokey Scotch lovers, this may be a great idea. For those who don't usually drink smokey Scotch, perhaps this is a good way to get into it.

Total Time 3

Servings 1 cocktail

Ingredients

30 mL Scotch Whiskey we suggest a smokey Scotch, but use what you like
30 mL Amaretto
Garnish with orange peel

Instructions

Add alcohol to a mixing glass with plenty of ice and stir until cold.
Strain into a Rocks glass filled with fresh ice.
Add garnish and drink.

Notes

There's not a lot of information on where the name of this recipe came from. It's possible that this mixture was a favourite of Marlon Brando who, of course, played Vito Corleono in the movie The Godfather. This feels fairly convenient because what was it called before Brando started drinking it?

While Scotch and Amaretto may feel like a weird mixture, nutty flavours go well with Whiskey, and we know a little bit of sugar (like in an Old Fashioned) goes well to. So what's not to work here? Try it for yourself and tell us. It's a great cocktail.

A Few More Thoughts About the Godfather Cocktail

This is a really interesting cocktail recipe. As mentioned, some would think adding Amaretto to Scotch is a quick way to ruin not only the Scotch, but also the Amaretto. Smokey Scotch drinkers especially usually hold their tipple of choice in high esteem, which may make the Godfather Cocktail even more controversial! However, give this cocktail a go, you may be pleasantly surprised!

Can I make a few of these at once?

That’s fine. Just add extra ingredients to your mixing glass and this recipe upscales quite easily. Then you have enough cocktails to share with friends.

Can I make this cocktail to serve later?

That would be fine. However, it’s probably best you don’t let the cocktail sit with the ice in it, otherwise the ice will melt and you’ll wind up with a very diluted drink. Feel free to stir the ingredients together then leave the drink in the refrigerator until you’re ready to drink it.

Is there a favourite time to drink a Godfather Cocktail?

Having a nice Scotch, whether served neat, on the rocks, or even with a little bit of water is good almost any time. However, a lot of people like to enjoy their Scotch after dinner, especially sitting in a comfortable chair. It’s a bit of a stereotype, but the idea of retiring to the sitting room or library to enjoy a glass of Scotch after dinner is a nice and warm one. Adding a bit of Amaretto to your Scotch brings a bit more sweetness and vanilla notes to a nice and relaxing drink. The Amaretto turns the Scotch into a bit more of a dessert drink than just a digestif.

So we’re going to say the best time to drink a Godfather Cocktail is after dinner, especially a long one that calls for a bit of sitting afterwards, but a dinner where you want to keep talking with your guests. It’s also a simple and easy cocktail to make, so it’s not too much trouble to make when you prefer to just relax and unwind.

Maybe you don’t have a sitting room or a library in your house, but maybe you can pretend with a few Godfather Cocktails!

Is the Godfather Cocktail strong?

It’s not as bad as a double Scotch! The minimum alcohol by volume of Scotch Whiskey is 40% while Amaretto usually only comes in between about 21-28% alcohol. We’re not going to do the math, but 30 mL of Scotch mixed with 30 mL of Amaretto is going to come in less than just 60 mL of Scotch! But, on the other hand, the Godfather Cocktail is just spirit. Many other cocktail recipes will at least mix spirits with something non-alcoholic like fruit juice or Club Soda, bringing down the ABV of the beverage considerably. So, in a sense, the Godfather Cocktail is strong in that it’s just pure booze!

But, on the other hand, if you look at a lot of other cocktail recipes they’ll also have about 60 mL of booze in them. It’s just that that booze is diluted! So the Godfather Cocktail actually doesn’t contain any more alcohol than what you’d find elsewhere. It’s just more concentrated.

What music do you listen to when drinking the Godfather Cocktail?

Is it weird to suggest popping on the Godfather movie soundtrack while enjoying a Godfather Cocktail? After all, this cocktail is thought to have been a favourite of Marlon Brando, which is why it’s gotten the name the Godfather Cocktail. It may be fun to have one of these with the full proper mood of the movie.

Going further, if you do take our advice and build a fancy library at home (and we’re talking fancy library with stuffy chairs and many leather bound books), it will feel even more Godfather-esque having one of these drinks!

Being predominantly instrumental, the Godfather soundtrack also works very well as background music when you have some people around, especially after dinner. Hopefully you enjoy this idea and can have some fun with it!

We’ll make you an offer you can’t refuse: more cocktail recipes!

Take a look below as we direct you to a few more cocktail recipes we think you may like, or just browse all of our cocktail recipes through the menu above:

All Whiskey cocktail recipes: if you’re enjoying a Godfather Cocktail, you probably enjoy Whiskey as well! We have quite a few cocktail recipes that feature Whiskey of different varieties.

All Scotch cocktail recipes: Scotch isn’t the most common ingredient in cocktails, but recipes that feature it do exist. Maybe you’ll find a few more fun ways to enjoy Scotch!

All three ingredient cocktail recipes: cocktail recipes with three or fewer ingredients are great because they’re quite easy to make, just like this one! If you’re looking for more easy cocktail recipes like this, we have you covered!

Top 10 Whiskey cocktail recipes: if all of the above is just too much for you to go through (there’s a fair few recipes for sure!), we have our favourite Whiskey cocktails for you to try. It’s a great place to start!

One Response

Chas says:
August 11, 2022 at 3:16 pm

eh… it was good and I get it, but I prefer my Scotch just as Scotch. Scotch works well in some cocktails but the Amaretto is taking over too much for me here.
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Godfather Cocktail Recipe