Last Word

The Last Word is a somewhat forgotten pre-Prohibition era cocktail that combines Gin, Chartreuse, and Maraschino Liqueur for a great throwback taste. This classic cocktail has been modified over the years, but we've tried to stay true to a recipe that's more than 100 years old.

This is cocktail is also a lot of fun if you have a lot of different ingredients lying around. Chartreuse and Maraschino Liqueur aren't entirely uncommon, but maybe you didn't know how to use them. Maybe you were seeing what cocktail you could make and found this, maybe you were just browsing. Either way, you found a winner!

Total Time 5

Servings 1 cocktail

Ingredients

30 mL Gin
30 mL Green Chartreuse
30 mL Maraschino Liqueur
30 mL Lime Juice
Garnish with cherry

Instructions

Add Gin, Green Chartreuse, Maraschino Liqueur, and Lime Juice to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until cold.
Strain into a Coupe glass.
Garnish, drink.

Notes

The Last Word was invented just before the Prohibition at the Detroit Athletic Club, however the recipe didn't appear in print until the 1950's. The Last Word was again largely forgotten about until the early 2000's when it was put onto a menu at a Seatle bar. From there it's been growing in popularity.

Since this drink was relatively obscure for a number of years, it appears that the recipe hasn't changed much in time. After all, it's just equal measures of four different ingredients, so why change it?

A Little Bit More About the Last Word Cocktail

The Last Word does a good job of combing a variety of flavours including herbal elements from both the Gin and Green Chartreuse, a bit of sweetness from the Maraschino Liqueur, and sour from the Lime Juice. Of course flavour elements go deeper than than herbal, sweet, and sour, but those are the broad strokes. Both the Chartreuse and Maraschino Liqueur have slight bitter elements to them, while the Chartreuse itself is pretty complex overall. So really, there’s quite a lot going on here! All in all, it’s a difficult cocktail to describe, but not difficult at all to drink. We encourage you to make a Last Word yourself to really understand this wonderful cocktail.

What happens if I try to make more than one Last Word at a time?

Then you’ll have more than one Last Word to drink! But seriously, you should be able to make two Last Words at once in a cocktail shaker. If you try to do any more, you risk not being able to effectively shake everything. It’s important to have plenty of space in your cocktail shaker in order to get a great cocktail.

What happens if I make a Last Word to drink later?

It wouldn’t be as good as drinking one of these great cocktails fresh. It might be OK, but a cocktail like this really deserves to be made and served to order. So do that.

What’s the best occasion for a Last Word Cocktail?

We think the Last Word is kind of a combination of a “cocktail time” kind of cocktail and an end of night drink. By “cocktail time” we mean it doesn’t really need an occasion beyond the occasion being time for cocktails. This may be at a cocktail party, a nice bar, or just that time of the day when it’s not quite before dinner drinks yet but it’s still time to drink!

As an end of night drink, we think the name says it all. It’s the last word of the night! There are some flavours in there that would suit dessert, but we see the Last Word as a bit of a nightcap. Maybe you’ve already had dessert and a coffee, but you just want one more drink to end things on. Maybe you’ve just gotten home after a long night out with friends and it’s a quick last drink to wind down. It’s the Last Word.

Is the Last Word a strong cocktail?

We’d say yes, the Last Word is a relatively strong cocktail. A lot of recipes limit themselves to about 60 mL of liquor overall, maybe up to 75 mL. If they are pushing things up to 90 mL (like the Last Word does), it’s mostly with lower alcohol modifiers like Vermouth or Campari. Maybe a liqueur is used (which is less than the base spirit), but everything is adjusted to prevent things from getting too boozy. The Last Word is a bit different here. Not only do you have a full portion of Gin (which comes in around 40%), it also has a full portion of Green Chartreuse, which is a pretty strong 55% ABV. The Maraschino Liqueur isn’t too bad at around 30%, but you can see how things are starting to add up here.

What kind of music is best for the Last Word?

Being a nightcap kind of drink, the Last Word does better with more laid back music. Maybe a little bit of Jazz or Acoustic Folk or and instrumental of sorts. We’ll leave this one up to you for what you like to put on when finishing an evening. Maybe you do need something a little uplifting if it’s been a long night but you just don’t want to go to sleep yet. Have fun!