Why do they call mixed drinks cocktails?

Question

HOW DID THEY COME UP WITH IT'S NAME?

Answer 1

Etymology of Cocktail

There are several plausible theories as to the origin of the term "cocktail". Among them are:

** Colonial taverns kept their spirits (rum, brandy, whiskey, gin, applejack) in casks, and as the liquid in the casks lowered, the spirits would tend to lose both flavor and potency, so the tavern keeper would have an additional cask into which the tailings from the low casks could be combined and sold at a reduced price, the patrons requesting the "cock tailings" or the tailings from the stop cock of the cask. This was H.L. Mencken's belief.

** Cocktails were originally a morning beverage, and the cocktail was the name given as metaphor for the rooster (cocktail) heralding morning light of day. This was first posited in 2004 by Ted Haigh in "Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails", and can be distinguished from the theory "take two snips of the hair of the dog that bit you", which refers to consuming a small bit of alcohol the morning after a "binge drinking night" to curb the effects of the symptoms of the hangover, which symptoms are actually the result of a mini-withdrawal/down-regulation effect.

** Some say that it was customary to put a feather, presumably from a cock's tail, in the drink to serve both as decoration and to signal to teetotalers that the drink contained alcohol.

** Another etymology is that the term is derived from coquetier, a French egg-cup which was used to serve the beverage in New Orleans in the early 19th century.[1]

** The beverage was named for a mixed breed horse, known as a "cock-tail" as the beverage, like the horse, was neither strictly spirit nor wine - it was a mixed breed.

[1] ^ Stanley Clisby Arthur Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix 'Em (Pelican Publishing Company, June 1977), ISBN 0-88289-132-4)

** The word could also be a distortion of Latin [aqua] decocta, meaning "distilled water".

** Non-alcoholic cocktails are referred to as being "Virgin Cocktails", free from the "sin" of alcohol consumption. They are also known as "mocktails" in India and parts of the United States.


(boy, the naughty word filter is a bit agressive, isn't it?)

Answer 2

The Origin of the Word "Cocktail"

The origin of the cocktail is a contested story whose truth may never fully come to light. For centuries, all over the western world, people have been experimenting with mixing drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. The origin of the name "cocktail" itself is not certain. Some of the more common (and amusing!) explanations are…

An Englishman's Misfortune
In 1779, after her husband was killed in the American War of Independence, innkeeper Betsy Flanagan opened an inn near Yorktown that was frequented by American and French soldiers. An English chicken farmer lived nearby. Due to the political climate at the time, Betsy was probably not too fond of her neighbor, prompting her to promise her American and French customers that she would serve them a meal of roast chicken one day. Her guests occasionally mocked her boasts saying she would never go through with it. One evening, an unusual number of officers gathered at her inn, so Betsy served a lavish meal of chicken, stolen from her English neighbor. When the meal was over, Betsy moved her guests to the bar, where she served up drinks decorated with a tail-feather from the chickens. The officers drank until morning, periodically making rowdy calls for more "cock tails."

A Ceramic Rooster
The owner of an American bar had a large ceramic container in the form of a rooster. The container was filled with the leftovers from drinks. The less affluent could get a drink from this container, served from a tap at the tail. Hence, the name cocktail became associated with a mix of drinks. Some say the quality was always high after English sailors had been in, as there was a good mixture of rum, gin and brandy in the cocktail.

Virginian Dregs
In nineteenth century America, a cock was a tap, while its tail was the last, muddy dregs of the tap. Colonel Carter, of Culpepper Court House, Virginia, was served the tail at his local tavern. Seeing it as a disgrace, he threw it to the floor and said from then on he would only drink "cock tails" of his own design. His concoction was a mix of gin, lemon peel, bitters and sugar, and is possibly the ancestor of modern cocktails.

Night-mare-ish Strength
A "cocktailed horse" was a term for one whose tail has been bobbed, giving it a flamboyant and jolly appearance. As the mixed drinks served in the bars and inns had a very high alcoholic content, the name "cocktail" possibly came from its ability to "cock the tail", or get a careless customer drunk very quickly.

There Once Was a Girl in Mexico…
In the early 1800s, the southern states had reached a peace agreement with King Axolot VIII of Mexico. At peace ceremonies, a drink was served to seal the agreement. At one ceremony, a pretty young woman brought forth the drink (she was also the one to concoct the drink) in an intricately decorated gold cup. As she was approaching the king and the general who represented the states, she realized that with only one cup, she would have to serve one before the other, causing embarrassment for one of the men. So instead of committing the social faux pas, she quickly drank the contents of the cup. The general asked the king who the girl was. The king replied "My daughter, Coctel."

Answer 3

You got me curious, so I took a look around the web. Unfortunately I am getting the impression that its origin is not clear. This explanation from, http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?l=c&p=17 , I found suggests several different guesses regarding its origin and offers one as most persuasive:

“first attested 1806; H.L. Mencken lists seven versions of its origin, perhaps the most persuasive is Fr. coquetier "egg-cup." In New Orleans, c.1795, Antoine Amédée Peychaud, an apothecary (and inventor of Peychaud bitters) held Masonic social gatherings at his pharmacy, where he mixed brandy toddies with his own bitters and served them in an egg-cup. The drink took the name of the cup, in Eng. cocktay. Cocktail party first attested 1928.”

And Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocktail ) suggests the earliest known usage:

“The earliest known printed use of the word "cocktail," as originally determined by Dr. David Wondrich in October 2005, was from "The Farmer's Cabinet", April 28, 1803, p [2]: "11. Drank a glass of cocktail--excellent for the head ... Call'd at the Doct's. found Burnham--he looked very wise--drank another glass of cocktail."”


Wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocktail ) also has a few explanations regarding its origin:

“Colonial taverns kept their spirits (rum, brandy, whiskey, gin, applejack) in casks, and as the liquid in the casks lowered, the spirits would tend to lose both flavor and potency, so the tavern keeper would have an additional cask into which the tailings from the low casks could be combined and sold at a reduced price, the patrons requesting the "cock tailings" or the tailings from the stop cock of the cask. This was H.L. Mencken's belief.”

“Cocktails were originally a morning beverage, and the cocktail was the name given as metaphor for the rooster (cocktail) heralding morning light of day.” (I may have taken that a bit out of context).

“Some say that it was customary to put a feather, presumably from a cock's tail, in the drink to serve both as decoration and to signal to teetotalers that the drink contained alcohol.”

“Another etymology is that the term is derived from coquetier, a French egg-cup which was used to serve the beverage in New Orleans in the early 19th century.”

“The beverage was named for a mixed breed horse, known as a "cock-tail" as the beverage, like the horse, was neither strictly spirit nor wine - it was a mixed breed.”

“The word could also be a distortion of Latin [aqua] decocta, meaning ‘distilled water’.”

Answer 4

Fuzzy Navel

Answer 5

Cause after a few drinks.. someones c**k will be in your tail.

Answer 6

They used to stir and garnish the drinks with a "cocks tail"....

Answer 7

Alcohol - Helping ugly people get laid since.....forever

Answer 8

Very good question...I have no idea :)

Answer 9

well i dont know!