Ingredients

1¾ ozcognac
50 ml
¾ ozwhite crème de menthe
20 ml

Instructions

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour the cognac, then the white crème de menthe. Stir for 20–25 seconds — about 30 rotations — until the mixing glass is frosty and the mint liqueur has disappeared into the brandy. Strain into a chilled coupe. No garnish is traditional; the drink should look almost clear, with only a faint mint tint from the white crème de menthe. If you want a colder, longer drink, strain it over crushed ice in a small rocks glass instead and give it one brief stir.

Sips & Tips

Technique

Stir, do not shake. White crème de menthe is already clear; shaking clouds a drink that should look like cold glass. The IBA ratio is roughly 5:2 cognac to mint — if you pour equal parts it becomes a mint bomb. Stir long enough that the mint is fully dissolved; a short stir leaves a sweet streak at the bottom. Crushed ice in a rocks glass is the nightcap version: colder, more dilution, same two bottles.

Balance

Use white crème de menthe, not green. Green turns the drink into a Grasshopper without the cream and photographs as a novelty. Tempus Fugit or a clean French white menthe is worth it; drugstore crème de menthe tastes like toothpaste. VSOP cognac matters more than usual because there is nothing else to hide behind — Rémy Martin VSOP or Martell VS. If the mint is loud, cut it to ½ oz. If the drink is flat, your cognac is too young or your menthe is too sweet.

History

The Stinger is a two-ingredient American classic that settled into hotel bars in the early twentieth century and stayed there as a digestif. The IBA lists it among The Unforgettables. Reginald Vanderbilt is often named as an early champion; the drink does not need a celebrity to make sense. It is brandy and mint, stirred and cold — the same idea as a crème de menthe frappé, minus the crushed-ice dessert energy, unless you choose that serve on purpose.

The Stinger is what you pour when dinner is over and you still want a drink that thinks. Two ingredients, one mixing glass. Cheers.

Variations

Stinger on crushed ice

Strain the same 5:2 mix over crushed ice in a small rocks glass when you want it colder and longer. This is the nightcap serve — more dilution, same mint-and-cognac conversation.

Vodka Stinger

Replace the cognac with a clean vodka only if brandy is not on the shelf. You lose the dried fruit that makes the original worth stirring; treat it as a last-resort highball of mint, not a substitute.