Origins of the Cocktail Party: A Quick and Dirty History of the Cocktail Party
Once upon a time (1917), in a primitive place that had not yet coined the term “rager,” there lived a woman named Mrs. Julius S. Walsh, Jr in the land of St. Louis, Missouri. Mrs. Walsh had a reputation for being, “a leader in society activities,” some of which involved hosting what the Walshes called a “Baby Party.” A Baby Party involved Mrs. Walsh, and her friends, dressing up in baby outfits and suckling alcoholic drinks out of baby bottles… Yes, we are entirely serious. Parties surrounding alcoholic beverages were becoming extremely popular in the early 1900’s, and creativity was abounding on new and entertaining ways to drink socially. But the cocktail party really marked the equinox of this thirsty time, however, to fully understand how the actual idea of a “cocktail party,” one needs to first explore the context of how, and why, it came about.
It all started with eggnog…
According to the Huffington Post, “The principal antecedent for the cocktail party comes from September 1890, when Mrs. Richard S. Dana introduced the concept of an “egg-nog party” in the society resort of Lenox, Mass., parties she would throw every autumn for years, when the goldenrod was in blossom. Following the lead of the Lenox “cottagers,” it became the height of Gilded Age fashion to host a party around a bowl of eggnog.” Officially kicking off the idea of social drinking, eggnog was the staple of the alcoholic cocktail. Unfortunately for eggnog, the concept burned out over the years as tastes turned to less dairy-orientated drinks.
Enter Mrs. Walsh. In honor of Dana’s eggnog parties, Mrs. Walsh invited 50 friends over to her mansion for a 1 hour party of drinking and merriment which she termed as “a Cocktail Party.” A variety of drinks were served, the main ones being Bronx cocktails (gin, dry vermouth, sweet vermouth and orange juice), Clover Leafs (gin, grenadine, lime juice and egg white, garnished with a mint leaf), Highballs, Gin Fizzes, Mint Juleps, Sazeracs (whiskey, sugar and Peychaud’s bitters in an absinthe-rinsed glass), Martinis and Manhattans. This idea was seen as an “innovation,” and Mrs. Walsh even received public praise for the idea in the local newspapers. The rest is history.
So next time you get together for a few drinks with friends, grab your diapers and baby bottles and don’t forget to raise a glass to Mrs. Walsh.
Mt Rose Drinks neither condones, or condemns, the bringing back of baby parties. (But if your throwing one and happen to invite us, we will be there with bibs on.)
