Know Your Limits — The 12 Mile Limit

Even though the anniversary of Prohibition’s end was last month, it’s never too late to celebrate it.

There’s some great history behind the 12 Mile Limit.  At the outset of Prohibition the territorial waters of the United States ended four miles offshore.  Rumrunners would set up shop just outside the line.  In an attempt to thwart them, in 1924 Congress extended the limit to ….. you guessed it, 12 miles.  We all know it didn’t work.  To celebrate slightly more than 71 years since the repeal of Prohibition, make this:

The 12 Mile Limit

1 ounce light rum
.5 ounces rye
.5 ounces brandy
.5 ounces Cherry Heering
Juice from 1/4 lemon

Combine in shaker with ice, shake like you’re on the run from the law or a rival rumrunner, and strain into a chilled glass.

This is my kind of a Prohibition era cocktail because it’s almost all booze.   If it is too tart for you, I suggest minimizing the rum and rye and/or adding a dash of super simple syrup.  The original recipe uses grenadine syrup (the real thing, not the sweet stuff you can buy in almost any grocery or liquor store) instead of Cherry Heering.  I opted for convenience over authenticity, as I already had a bottle of Cherry Heering in my bar.

If you want to read a magnificent book about Prohibition, I highly recommend Last Call by Daniel Okrent.  It is an entertaining read and you will learn all sorts of fascinating things.  Even if you go past your own 12 mile limit.