Those few stalwarts who count themselves as regular readers of this space - and you know who you are, you irrepressible scamps - know that we're big fans of cocktail historian David Wondrich. If you're at all interested in the history of drink mixin' in this fine country of ours, then Wondrich's work is what you're looking for: lucid, entertaining, exhaustively researched and, best of all, tested for modern practical bartending.

Take, for example, his recent piece at esquire.com (where he writes a regular column) on the antique drink called the Tuxedo, after The Tuxedo Club in Jersey City, a planned 1885 community that foresaw our current gated housing developments for the well-heeled. After a good bit of historical background - The Tuxedo Club was the spot where certain young bucks of East Coast society set the world of dinner fashion on its rear by chopping the tails from their dress jackets, Wondrich tells us - he presents a recipe that would taste good in any era:

Tuxedo

* 2 ounces London dry gin

* 1 ounce dry sherry

* 1 dash of orange bitters

Shake gin, sherry and bitters thoroughly with cracked ice, strain into chilled cocktail glass.

Recipe courtesy of David Wondrich via esquire.com.