Cowboy

The Cowboy is an easy-to-make cocktail consisting of just two ingredients – whisk(e)y and heavy cream (aka double cream). It’s shaken with ice and served in a pre-chilled cocktail glass.

The Cowboy is a cocktail that’s creamy, rich, and sweet. The bold vanilla, caramel, and oak notes of the bourbon are complemented and softened by the smooth texture and sweetness of heavy cream. Naturally, the nuances of the drink will vary depending on the bourbon or whisk(e)y you choose to use.

The Cowboy cocktail originates from the Prohibition era in the United States. Although little else is documented about the drink, we know it appeared in cocktail books for bartenders during the 1920s and 1930s, with its first public printing in a popular cocktail book in 1930.

The drink highlights the inventive bartending techniques of its era, where ingredients like cream were used to soften the intensity of bootleg spirits.

While our Cowboy recipe uses 1.5 parts bourbon to half-a-part heavy cream, the classic version calls for two parts Scotch whisky to one part cream, with measurements varying slightly across different cocktail books.

• Pre-chill your glassware
  If you’ve checked out any of our other drink recipes, you know we always recommend pre-chilling your cocktail glassware. It keeps your drink perfectly cold and enhances the sipping experience.

  Simply place your cocktail glass in the freezer for 30 minutes and you’ll have a glass ready for your ice cold cocktail.

• Use heavy cream
  We recommend using heavy cream, also known as double cream, in a Cowboy cocktail to achieve a velvety texture.

  With 36–40% fat content, it resists curdling when mixed with acidic ingredients. Heavy cream is perfect for decadent dessert drinks like this one.

• Midnight Cowboy
  This variation of the original Cowboy is the more common and popular version today. While it retains the bourbon and heavy cream of the original, it introduces dark Jamaican rum for a completely new flavor profile.Our recipe for a Midnight Cowboy uses 2 parts bourbon, 1 part rum, and half-a-part heavy cream, though recipes vary widely, with some calling for equal parts of each. Although there are few variations of the Cowboy, the Midnight Cowboy has inspired many more. Check out our recipe for a Midnight Cowboy.
• Experiment with different whisk(e)y types
  As noted in the history section above, the original Cowboy cocktail was made with Scotch whisky. Feel free to substitute bourbon with Scotch whisky for a taste closer to the original.You can also experiment with other whiskey/whisky varieties, such as rye whiskey, Irish whiskey, or even peated whiskey to introduce a smoky quality to your Cowboy.
• Use single cream
  If you prefer, you can choose single cream (12-18% fat), which offers a smoother and thinner consistency, providing subtle creaminess without the heaviness of heavy cream.

• We recommend serving the Cowboy in a pre-chilled cocktail glass. Since the drink originated during the Prohibition era, when consuming alcohol had to be discreet, it traditionally comes without a garnish.
• Although lemon zest or a lemon wheel is a common garnish for many cocktails, the citrus would cause the cream in this cocktail to curdle, so it’s best avoided.