Joe Gilmore (born Belfast 19 May 1922) was one of the longest running Head Barmen at The Savoy Hotel's American Bar. Joe Gilmore started as a trainee barman at The American Bar in 1940 and was appointed Head Barman in 1955, a position he held until he retired in 1976. Over his years as Head Barman, Gilmore invented numerous cocktails to mark special events and important guests, a longstanding tradition at the American Bar. Joe Gilmore has invented cocktails in honor of a number of royalty, politicians and celebrities including The Prince of Wales, Prince William, The Princess Anne, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, The Prince Andrew, Sir Winston Churchill, and American Presidents Harry S. Truman and Richard Nixon. He also invented cocktails to commemorate the first walk on the moon in 1969 by Neil Armstrong, and the American and Russian link-up in space in 1975.
In addition to serving five generations of royals at private receptions and parties, Joe has also served Errol Flynn, Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Grace Kelly, George Bernard Shaw, Ernest Hemingway, Noel Coward, Agatha Christie, Alice Faye, Ingrid Bergman, Julie Andrews, Laurence Olivier Joan Crawford, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created for Sir Winston Churchill’s ninetieth birthday. It is also known as the Four Score and Ten.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created for Sir Winston Churchill on one of his many visits to The Savoy.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created to mark Britain’s entry into the European Economic Community in 1973, using drinks from all the other member states.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard garnish | |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Stir together with ice, strain into glass, garnish with a twisted lemon rind |
| Notes | This cocktail is very similar to The Blenheim |
Created for Sir Winston Churchill’s eightieth birthday.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into champagne cocktail glass, and fill with champagne. |
Created in 1973 to commemorate the wedding of HRH The Princess Anne to Captain Mark Phillips. Doublet was the name of the Princess’s horse on which she participated in the European Championships in 1973.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created for Sir David Davies.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | On the rocks; poured over ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake well, serve on the rocks. |
Created in 1975 to mark the American and Russians link up in Space, the Apollo-Soyuz project. The Link Up cocktail was sent to the U.S.A and U.S.S.R for the astronauts to enjoy when they returned from their mission. When told this by NASA as they linked up in Space, they responded, "Tell Joe we want it up here".
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | On the rocks; poured over ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Stir with ice, strain into glass, and serve. |
Created to mark President Charles de Gaulle’s State visit to Britain after the Second World War.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
The Missouri Mule cocktail was created for President Harry S Truman. The cocktail commemorates Truman's homestate of Missouri and the donkey mascot of the Democratic Party (a mule is a hybrid of a donkey and a horse).
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake well, strain into wine glass and top up with champagne. |
Created in 1969 to mark the first moon landing. The cocktail was the first drink the American astronauts had when they returned to Earth.[1] A letter of thanks was later sent from Neil Armstrong to Joe Gilmore.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created to mark Julie Andrews’ first night in the musical My Fair Lady.
| Type | Mixed drink |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | On the rocks; poured over ice |
| Standard garnish |
a slice of fresh peach and a cherry |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Stir and serve on the rocks, garnish. |
Created in 1969 to mark American President Richard Nixon's visit to Britain. The cocktail was mixed at the American bar and then sent over to Claridge's where Nixon was staying.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created for Sarah, Duchess of York’s
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Snifter |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together. Serve straight or with one ice cube |
Created for Edward Shelly at his request.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Champagne glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Blend and then pour into a champagne glass and fill with champagne. |
Created to mark the Investiture of HRH The Prince Charles as Prince of Wales.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created in 1960 to mark the birth of HRH The Prince Andrew.
| Type | Mixed drink |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard garnish |
a strawberry |
| Standard drinkware | Champagne cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass, and fill with champagne and garnish. |
Created by Joe Gilmore at the Atlantic Hotel, Hamburg, Germany.
| Type | Mixed drink |
|---|---|
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Champagne glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Liquidise, strain into a champagne glass and fill with champagne. |
Created for HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother on one of her private visits to The Savoy.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a glass. |
The corpse revivers are a series of hangover cures invented during prohibition. This recipe is a variation invented by Gilmore in 1954.
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Straight up; without ice |
| Standard drinkware | Cocktail glass |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass. |
Created in 1990 to commemorate the election of John Wolff Director of Rudolf Wolff as Chairman of the London Metal Exchange. "Wolfram" is another name for the element tungsten.