Making Vintage Planter S Punch With A Slight Twist

• Julia Thiel
• Jasper’s Jamaican Planter’s Punch with lemon ice cubes

Since receiving a copy of Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails as a gift a few years ago, I’ve leafed through it several times, always getting drawn into Ted Haigh’s detailed explanations of the old-fashioned cocktails. They feature exotic, often long-forgotten ingredients like Kola Tonic, crème de violette, the dark purple Parfait Amour, and the Scandinavian liqueur Swedish Punsch—and that’s exactly what’s kept me from ever attempting to actually make any of the recipes. There’s even a recipe for creating your own version of Boker’s Bitters, which haven’t been available since the 19th century. Many of the recipes involve less obscure ingredients, but even the easier ones tend to call for things I don’t usually have on hand, like sloe gin, apricot brandy, cognac, or kirschwasser.

• Julia Thiel
• Jasper’s Secret Mix

There’s one more recipe you can make with the lime/sugar/bitters/nutmeg mixture: Jasper’s Rum Punch, which uses Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum instead of the dark rum (in the same proportions as the Planter’s Punch). I haven’t tried it yet, but Haigh promises that the overproof white rum “gives the drink an entirely different flavor and overall character.”