Flying Dutchman

The FLYING DUTCHMAN is a legendary ghost ship from the 17th century that can never make port and is doomed to sail the oceans forever (see “History” below).

Or, it’s a classic gin cocktail. This is a simple yet tasty gin cocktail which ranks high on the list of gin mixes. It requires only gin and Cointreau (or triple sec) with some lemon and orange flavorings.

Requirements: Dry gin, Cointreau, orange bitters, lemon peel

• 3 oz. (2 jiggers) dry gin
• .75 oz. (1 pony) Cointreau
• 2-3 dashes orange bitters
• lemon peel

Wet the rim of a cocktail glass with a lemon peel and drop it into the glass. Combine liquid ingredients into an ice-filled shaker and stir until chilled. Strain into the prepared cocktail glass.

Comments: There are wide-ranging recipes to the Flying Dutchman. This version is the “classic” and simplest to make. Key to my enjoying this drink were the dashes of orange bitters and the lemon-flavored glass rim. The end result is a clean and refreshing drink. If you have enough of these clean & refreshing drinks, you might start hearing messages from the crew of the Flying Dutchman ghost ship. They’ll be calling you for a round of gin. Remember to add the Cointreau, bitters and lemon peel to honor their ship’s name. Lift your glass to them and they’ll refrain from haunting you forever.

History of the Flying Dutchman ship: The sea captain found himself struggling to round the Cape of Good Hope during a ferocious storm. He swore that he would succeed even if he had to sail until Judgment Day. The Devil heard his oath, and took him up on it. The Dutchman was condemned to stay at sea forever. Sightings in the 19th and 20th centuries reported the ship to be glowing with ghostly light before disappearing, usually during rough weather. If hailed by another ship, the crew of the Flying Dutchman will try to send messages to land, or to people long dead. In ocean lore, the sight of this phantom ship is a portent of doom.