This favorite cocktail of the Rat Pack first appeared in 1937 at a British Industries Fair in New York. The Rusty Nail is a blend of Scotch Whisky and Drambuie (a liqueur made from Scotch Whisky, herbs, spices and honey). The original cocktail was called B.I.F. but soon after the fair it was forgotten, reappearing in NYC in the 1950s as the Rusty Nail and becoming the most popular cocktail around.

There are several different stories as to how the name came about. One is that it came from the rusty nails on the wooden crates of Drambuie. Another that it was a bartender using a nail as a swizzle stick. In all likelihood it has more to do with the color of the blend of Drambuie and Scotch.

The Drambuie liqueur was launched in 1910 but the idea of this blend of Scotch, herbs and honey dates back to the 1745 when the Scottish Prince Charles Edward Stuart came back to the British Isles after an exile in Rome. Returning to his homeland to try to reclaim the British throne for his father he brought his liqueur recipe with him. His enterprise did not however work according to plan and being defeated in a battle in 1746 the prince had to flee to The Isle of Skye where the Clan MacKinnon helped him escape the British Isles for good.

To thank the MacKinnons the Prince gave the clan leader John MacKinnon the secret liqueur recipe where it has been treasured for generations. 100 years later the MacKinnons were persuaded by John Ross, a hotelier at the Broadford Hotel on Skye, to make a batch for his local customers. They liked it so much they called it “the drink that satisfies” or “an dram buidheach” in Gaelic. Changing the name to something a little easier to pronounce John Ross’s son James patented the name Drambuie in 1893 and in 1909 James’s widow Eleanor started producing the liqueur together with Malcolm MacKinnon.

The glass was designed by Finnish designer Anu Penttinen for Marimekko in 2010 and is called Sukat Makkaralla meaning “Socks rolled down”.

Product information

This is one in a series of illustrations of classic cocktail recipes with a selection of the most beautifully designed glasses.

The size 40x50 cm (approx 16x20”) are signed and printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Bright White 310g archival paper and are sold in a limited edition of 50 prints.

The size 30x40 cm (approx 12x16”) are printed on Hahnemühle Fine Art Studio Enhanced 210g archival paper.