Last Word
Ingredients
- 3/4 ounces gin
- 3/4 ounces green Chartreuse
- 3/4 ounces maraschino liqueur
- 3/4 ounces lime juice – freshly squeezed (~0.5 medium limes)
- ice – for shaking
- maraschino cherry – for serving (optional)
Instructions
1. Chill a coupe glass in the freezer until cold, about 5 minutes.
2. Add 0.75 oz each of gin, green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, and freshly squeezed lime juice to a cocktail shaker.
3. Fill the shaker with ice and shake hard until well chilled and the shaker is frosty, 10–12 seconds.
4. Fine-strain into the chilled coupe.
5. Garnish with the maraschino cherry, if using, and serve immediately.
The Last Word is a bracing, equal-parts cocktail that balances bright citrus with heady herbal sweetness. Gin lays a crisp backbone, green Chartreuse adds deep alpine botanicals, maraschino liqueur contributes a delicate cherry-almond note, and fresh lime juice sharpens everything with a clean, tart edge. Shaken and served up, it’s vivid green, silky on the palate, and finishes dry enough to invite another sip.
Born in the early 20th century, the drink is widely credited to the Detroit Athletic Club around 1915 and associated with the pre-Prohibition and Prohibition-era penchant for potent, complex mixtures. It faded from popular menus for decades until bartender Murray Stenson rediscovered it in the early 2000s from a mid-century cocktail book and championed it in Seattle, sparking a modern revival. Its elegant 1:1:1:1 template has since inspired countless riffs and cemented the Last Word as a contemporary classic.