The Pegu Membership is a drink within the bitter class of cocktails that’s made with gin, orange liqueur, recent lime juice, and bitters. It has a tart, barely candy taste profile with advanced citrus notes. The Pegu Membership is served ‘up’ in a coupe glass and is garnished with a lime twist.

This approachable cocktail is akin to a Margarita. It swaps gin for tequila is sort of well-liked amongst bartenders. The Pegu Membership’s historical past, although, is sophisticated. It is mentioned to have been invented across the flip of the twentieth century at a bar situated within the Pegu Membership, a members membership situated in Yangon, Myanmar (then, Burma) that was frequented by British army and authorities officers throughout Britain’s occupation of Myanmar from 1824–1948.

This Gin Bitter riff was the signature cocktail of the Pegu Membership (ultimately taking the institution’s identify) and was primarily popularized by the largely white male members who frequented the membership. So whereas the drink has roots in Myanmar, its unlikely you may discover it on native bar menus throughout the nation as we speak.

The straightforward recipe for the Pegu Membership did make its method into twentieth century cocktail books (together with Harry MacElhone’s 1923 The ABCs of Mixing Cocktails) which helped cement it into the trendy basic cocktail lexicon. The Pegu Membership had a marked resurgence in 2005 when lauded bartender Audrey Saunders named her New York Metropolis-based cocktail lounge, Pegu Membership, after the tart cocktail.

Why the Pegu Membership works

The success of the Pegu Membership is in its simplicity. The recipe is akin to each a Margarita or a Sidecar the place recent citrus juice and orange liqueur are each used. Not like these basic drinks, although, the Pegu Membership is constructed off a base of gin, and embody fragrant bitters.

Whereas any form of gin will work right here, leaning into gins with a citrusy taste profile will double down on the intense, recent notes current within the drink. Attempt, for instance, Citadelle Gin or Dorothy Parker Gin. Gins that lean closely on woodsy or herbaceous botanicals would possibly conflict with the fruitier notes.

Orange liqueur provides sweetness to the drink with out being overly sugary. Search for a high-quality orange liqueur or orange curaçao (comprised of dried orange peels) for a extra advanced taste profile.