Sammy Davis Jr’s favourite cocktail
It’s a widely accepted truth that you can judge someone solely by their favourite cocktail. For the continental, it’s an Aperol Spritz; for the basic, a Sex on the Beach; and for those who like to feign superiority, an Espresso Martini. Argue amongst yourselves. Similarly, the world’s most stylish stars can often be summed up by their drink of choice—after all, it offers a revealing glimpse into their character and lifestyle. For Sammy Davis Jr, there was only ever one drink that fit the bill.
Naturally, as part of the Rat Pack, which had a notorious reputation for drinking, Davis’ choice of cocktail would have held significant importance; he couldn’t just go with anything. It had to be something chic, suave, masculine, yet sophisticated – and he managed to hit the nail on the head. Or should that be the rusty nail because the aptly named cocktail happened to be his favourite?
Now, we’ll forgive you if you’re not sure what that is – it’s not exactly the top drink being made by bartenders up and down the country these days, but back in Davis’ prime of the 1950s and ‘60s, it sat at the heart of America’s cocktail culture, an appropriately stylish snifter for someone of Davis’ stature.
Made up of one to two parts Scotch whisky and Drambuie liqueur, Davis was not the only one of his cronies who had a taste for a rusty nail – indeed, all of the Rat Pack favoured it as their drink of choice, and as such it became synonymous with them. However, a far cry from the casinos of Las Vegas, the ingredients of a rusty nail can be firmly traced back to Scotland, with whisky an obvious staple. Drambuie is derived from the Gaelic phrase ‘An Dram Buidheach’, meaning, ‘a drink that satisfies’. Well, the Rat Pack were the perfect poster boys for that.
It seems that Davis, in particular, had a penchant for whisky, given that in the 1970s and 1980s, he became associated through advertising campaigns for Suntory Whisky in Japan, once again creating a trailblazing moment by which his career was defined. After all, he was a pioneer in breaking down American racial segregation as well as advocating for self-expression, most obviously signified in his music with such iconic hits as ‘I’ve Gotta Be Me’. There’s no questioning a character like that.
If one thing is for sure, Sammy Davis Jr knew who he was in life. Whether it was through politics or fashion, movies or music, there was an undeniable sense of unapologetic uniqueness to the man that could not be replicated. It’s true what they say – they really don’t make them like that anymore. But just like everything else that summed up his persona, the smoke, style, and fire of a rusty nail cocktail could only be befitting of a certain type of man, the type which he embodied. Maybe we’ve uncovered the secret as to why there’s no one like Sammy Davis Jr – there needs to be a resurgence of the rusty nail.
