The Buck – and Rickey – Stop Here

Springtime is a bit of a puzzle when it comes to drinks. Depending on where you live, temps may already be hitting 80 to 90 degrees (Florida, the Southwest) or may still be languishing in the 40s to 50s. The latter certainly isn’t winter weather, but it isn’t exactly conducive to lazing by the pool. Still, the warm weather will sweep across the nation before we know it, making spring a perfect time to start mixing up variations on the Buck and Rickey, two long drinks that have their roots at the end of the 19th century. Whether you are a seltzer type or prefer the zing of ginger, these drinks will satisfy. Play around with the variations below and discover your favorite. And, if the kids want to be part of the fun, let them make their own Roy Rogers (cola and grenadine) or Shirley Temple (lemon-lime soda and grenadine.)

The Buck has gone by so many names that you have to reference the era in order to see the trend. In the original edition of Jerry Thomas’s Bartender’s Guide, Thomas offers a recipe for ginger lemonade. By the time the revised 1887 edition was published, Thomas had included a Brandy and Ginger Ale recipe. Add a long spiral of lemon peel and some bitters, and you’ll have a Horse’s Neck, notably lacking the citrus juice.

The first real Buck it seems appeared Pre-Prohibition in the guise of the Scotch-based Mamie Taylor. During Prohibition, the term “Buck” came into use and, in the 1930s, the recipe showed up in the Savoy Cocktail Book. The Gin Buck was perhaps the most popular, but any spirit could be substituted as we can see from the most familiar version — the Moscow Mule, which uses gin. The main components of any Buck/Mule are a spirit, citrus, and ginger beer (or ale.)

The Buck also happens to be the starting point for numerous long drink variations. Start with dry gin, switch out lemon for the lime, add a little sugar and you have a Tom Collins. Use genever instead of gin and you have a John Collins. Shake the mixture without the club soda until fizzy, then top with club soda — presto, it’s a Gin Fizz.

The Rickey is the Buck’s kissing cousin, different only in its use of club soda or seltzer water, which are essentially interchangeable terms for the same thing – carbonated water. Today, the difference is that seltzer is only water and carbon dioxide with no added minerals, while club soda has either potassium or sodium salts added, giving it a slightly different flavor.   Technically club soda came into being before ginger beer/ale, so the Rickey is the older drink. Your preference generally depends on the level of sweetness and the inclusion or lack of ginger.

Regardless of which you make, they can both be tinkered with to add more fruitiness or sweetness depending on what sort of syrup you choose. Further, if you toss in some herbs — as does Audrey Saunders’ modern Gin-Gin Mule with mint (and house-made ginger beer) — or even sliced cucumber, berries, or apple (think Pimm’s Cup) you can customize your drink to your exact specifications.

Basic Buck/Rickey Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 oz. Your choice of spirit (dry gin, vodka, whiskey, brandy)
• 3/4 oz. Freshly squeezed lime juice
• Shell of half a lime (from the squeezed juice), if desired
• Ginger beer/ale or club soda, to top

Preparation: Fill a Collins glass with ice. Ad the spirit, lime juice, and lime shell. Stir to combine. Top with your choice of ginger beer/ale (Buck) or club soda (Rickey.)

Specific Buck Variations:

Mamie Taylor (A Scotch Buck): 2 oz. Blended Scotch, lime juice/shell, ginger beer

Moscow Mule (A Vodka Buck): 2 oz. vodka, lime juice/shell, ginger beer.

Floradora: Add 1/2 oz. raspberry syrup before adding ginger beer.

Barbados Buck: 1 oz. light rum, 1 oz. dark rum

Jamaica Buck: 2 oz. dark rum

Specific Rickey Variations:

Circus Rickey: Add a dash of grenadine to sweetness preference before topping with club soda.

Fin de Siècle: Replace lime with lemon juice/shell; add 1 tsp. raspberry syrup before topping with club soda.