The recipe
for your table
Add all four ingredients to a shaker with plenty of ice.
Shake vigorously for 15 seconds - this cocktail should be really cold.
Double strain into a chilled Nick & Nora glass.
Garnish with a cherry or a lime twist, if desired.
The story
The Last Word was served around 1916 at the Detroit Athletic Club, where vaudeville performer Frank Fogarty made it popular - hence the name, possibly as a nod to his sharp tongue. The cocktail disappeared completely from the radar after Prohibition, until bartender Murray Stenson unearthed it in 2004 from an old club booklet and put it on the menu at Zig Zag Café in Seattle. From there, it conquered the world once again: the archetypal 'forgotten classic' with a second life.
The right glass
The Last Word is compact and powerful, so choose a small, refined glass: the 14 to 16 cl Nick & Nora glass fits it perfectly. Its slightly inward-curving rim brings together the herbal aromas of the chartreuse, and on a stem the cocktail stays cold until the - indeed - last word. A small coupe is also an excellent choice. A small coupe works just as well here; take a look at our champagne coupe glasses.
Bormioli Rocco Novecento Cocktail Glass 15.5 cl Nick And Nora (set of 4)
Onis Bespoke Cocktail Glass 15.5 cl Nick & Nora (set of 6)
Both sets — together € 60,90.
The right tools
For a Last Word, besides the glass you need a shaker, a jigger for precise measuring, a fine strainer for double straining, and a zester for the twist. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 4 bar tools — together € 81,75.
Variations & twists
The equal-parts template is a playground: mezcal makes it smoky, rye (Final Ward) makes it spicy, and yellow Chartreuse makes it softer. The Naked & Famous – mezcal, yellow Chartreuse, Aperol, lime – is the most famous descendant. Measure carefully: with four equal parts, everything matters. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
The equal-parts template can be adapted endlessly: replace gin with mezcal and you have a Last of the Oaxacans. Remember the formula and you'll always have an impressive cocktail ready.
Four equal parts of 2 cl
Gin, green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, and fresh lime juice all go in at exactly 2 cl. That makes the recipe easy to remember and unforgiving at the same time, because no single ingredient can compensate for a measuring error. Half a centiliter too much Chartreuse and the herbs overpower everything; half a centiliter too much maraschino and the whole drink becomes cloyingly sweet. Use a jigger and don't pour by feel. Then shake vigorously with plenty of ice for 15 seconds, and double-straining prevents ice shards from ending up in the glass.
How strong is a Last Word
Despite the modest 8 cl in the shaker, you end up at around 23 percent ABV. Green Chartreuse at 55 percent is the strongest of the group, gin contributes 40 percent, and maraschino about 32 percent, together adding up to more than 2.5 cl of pure alcohol. Shaking adds around 30 percent water, bringing the drink to 11 cl. That is roughly two standard drinks in a drink you finish in five sips. The lime and sweet maraschino almost completely conceal that strength, so stick to one or two.
Last Word, Final Ward or Naked and Famous
The equal-parts template can be varied endlessly, and three variations have become classics. The Final Ward replaces the gin with rye whiskey and the lime with lemon, producing a spicier, warmer drink. The Naked and Famous uses mezcal, yellow Chartreuse, and Aperol instead of gin, green Chartreuse, and maraschino, and is smoky and bittersweet. The Last of the Oaxacans keeps everything the same but puts mezcal in the gin position. In every case, the amount remains 2 cl of each ingredient, shaken for 15 seconds.
Green Chartreuse: scarce and replaceable
Green Chartreuse has been made by Carthusian monks since 1737 using 130 herbs and contains 55 percent alcohol. In 2023, the order decided not to increase production further, making bottles scarce and expensive, and in the Netherlands you can quickly end up paying sixty euros or more for 70 cl. Yellow Chartreuse at 40 percent is softer and more honey-sweet and works perfectly well, although you lose the herbal sharpness. Génépy des Alpes comes reasonably close at one-third of the price. Maraschino, by the way, is not cherry syrup but a dry liqueur containing 32 percent alcohol.
Frequently asked questions
What is in a Last Word?
A Last Word consists of four equal parts: 2 cl gin, 2 cl green Chartreuse, 2 cl maraschino liqueur, and 2 cl fresh lime juice, garnished with a cocktail cherry or lime zest. Since each ingredient carries equal weight, the result depends on precise measuring.
What is green Chartreuse and what can you replace it with?
Green Chartreuse is a French herbal liqueur containing 55 percent alcohol, made by Carthusian monks from more than a hundred plants since 1840. There is no true substitute. Yellow Chartreuse gives a softer, sweeter version, while génépi comes closest in alpine herbal character.
Should a Last Word be shaken or stirred?
Shaken, firmly for about fifteen seconds. It contains fresh lime juice, and citrus needs to be shaken for the right dilution, texture, and temperature. Double-straining it into a pre-chilled stemmed glass keeps it ice-cold to the last sip; see our Nick & Nora glasses.
Where does the name Last Word come from?
The cocktail appeared around 1916 at the Detroit Athletic Club, where vaudeville performer Frank Fogarty made it popular; the name probably refers to his sharp tongue. After Prohibition, it disappeared completely until bartender Murray Stenson put it back on the menu in Seattle in 2004.
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