Here's a cinematic toast to celebrate Dee Dixon’s Vertigo, which recalls the 1958 Alfred Hitchcock film of the same name. The comparison is not as far-fetched as it may seem, since both items can arguably be called psychological thrillers … The movie starred James Stewart, who contracts an extreme fear of heights while working as a detective. Sticking with Hitchcock’s canon leads us to 1959’s North by Northwest, considered to be one of the greatest films of all time. This one featured Cary Grant in a case of mistaken identity. In one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history, he is chased across a field by a crop duster plane.

In 2008, New York bartender Brian Miller created this cocktail while at Death & Company, imagining “something Cary Grant would drink at the Plaza Hotel.” He cites the line from the Hitchcock film when Grant states, “I’ve got a job, a secretary, a mother, two ex-wives, and several bartenders that depend on me” as a fitting reason such a drink ought to exist. Fans of the classic French 75 cocktail will no doubt recognize this template of lemon, sugar, gin and Champagne which evolved into that recipe over time from World War I and references the powerful French 75mm field gun. Miller’s recipe adds a hint of absinthe, and was originally made with Aviation brand gin, which was perhaps another nod to the famous film scene. Cheers!

North by Northwest by Brian Miller, 2008

1 ½ oz gin (Aviation)

¼ oz absinthe

¾ oz lemon

¾ oz simple syrup

Champagne

Shake initial ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with the Champagne.

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