Squid Mixes: Leap-Year Cocktail

The Leap-Year Cocktail combines gin, Grand Marnier, sweet vermouth and lemon juice with a lemon twist for garnish.  I got the recipe from Gary Regan's The Joy of Mixology.  It was invented by Harry Craddock at the Savoy in London, first served on February 29th, 1928.

The Manhattan is definitely the most popular cocktail at our house.  The solid runner-up is the Sidecar.  Anything lemony is already winning with my wife.  In fact, I found this particular concoction when she asked if I had anything featuring a lemon.  Fortunately, variations on the sour concept are plentiful and Regan's book has handy charts for finding them.

We both enjoyed the Leap-Year - a bit more balanced (less citrusy) than a Sidecar, in fact.  My wife said she'd be happy to have one more often than once every four years.