Horse’s Neck
A Horse’s Neck is 40ml of cognac and 120ml of ginger ale over ice in a highball, with a dash of Angostura if you want it, stirred once and dressed with a whole lemon peel cut in one long spiral and hung from the rim. About 1.6 UK units. The measures follow the IBA, and the spirit is brandy; bourbon makes the American version. It began without alcohol. By the early 1900s a Horse’s Neck was ginger ale over ice with that spiral of peel, and by the 1910s bartenders were adding brandy or bourbon for a stiff one. The name is usually put down to the peel, which curls over the side of the glass like a horse’s neck. Ginger ale is light and sweet, so the cognac’s fruit stays in the drink, and the long peel keeps scenting it as you go.
Glassware: Highball Glass
Garnish: Lemon spiral one long peel hung over the rim into the glass
Ingredients
40ml
A VS or VSOP cognac at 40% ABV with some dried fruit to it. It is a quarter of the drink and the ginger ale is sweet, so a thin brandy disappears. Bourbon at the same measure makes the American version.
120ml
Ginger ale rather than ginger beer: lighter, sweeter and less fiery, so the cognac stays in view. Open it cold and fresh, because it is three quarters of the glass.
1 dash
One dash, at 44.7% ABV, optional in the IBA recipe and worth taking. It adds clove and bitterness that meet the ginger from a different side.
Instructions
Peel a whole lemon in one continuous spiral.
Hook one end over the rim of a highball glass so the spiral hangs inside.
Fill the glass with cubed ice, holding the spiral against the side.
Pour in the cognac, and the dash of Angostura if using.
Top with chilled ginger ale and stir once, gently.
Source: the IBA (Official IBA specification; method ours). Last checked 10 October 2026.
Expert Tip
Cut the spiral before anything else and hang it in the empty glass. Fill with ice to hold it against the side, then pour. Added at the end, it has to be pushed down through the ice and loses its shape. Use ginger ale, not ginger beer. Ginger ale is lighter and sweeter and leaves room for the cognac. Ginger beer has more bite and more body, and it buries the brandy. Take the dash of Angostura. It is optional in the IBA recipe, and a single dash of clove and bitter bark keeps the ginger ale from making the drink taste only sweet.
Behind the Horse’s Neck
Flavour Profile
A Soft Drink First
The Horse’s Neck began as a drink for people who were not drinking. By the early 1900s it meant ginger ale over ice with a long spiral of lemon peel. By the 1910s brandy or bourbon was going in for those who were, and the spirit version gradually took the name.
The alcohol-free original stayed on American menus for decades. Franklin Roosevelt is reported to have asked for it at gatherings where the drinking ran long.
The Wardroom Drink
In Britain the brandy version found a home in the Royal Navy. It is said to have displaced pink gin in officers’ wardrooms by the 1960s, and at naval cocktail parties it went round in jugs, ready-mixed, beside the gin and tonic.
The Spiral
Peel a whole lemon in one continuous strip with a channel knife or a sharp peeler, hook one end over the rim and let the rest coil down inside the glass. A strip that long carries a lot of oil, and because it stays in the drink it keeps scenting the glass to the last sip.
Ginger Ale, Not Ginger Beer
Three parts ginger ale to one of cognac makes a long, mild drink, so the mixer is most of what you taste. Ginger ale is light and sweet and lets the dried fruit in the brandy through. Ginger beer is spicier and heavier, built for the Moscow Mule, and it flattens a cognac.
Spirit and Ginger Highballs
The Horse’s Neck beside our Presbyterian and Moscow Mule
Horse’s Neck
- Spirit
- 40ml cognac
- Mixer
- 120ml ginger ale, optional dash of Angostura
- UK units
- About 1.6
Presbyterian
- Spirit
- 50ml rye
- Mixer
- 60ml ginger ale, 60ml soda water
- UK units
- About 2.0
Moscow Mule
- Spirit
- 45ml vodka
- Mixer
- 120ml ginger beer, 10ml lime
- UK units
- About 1.8
| Drink | Spirit | Mixer | UK units |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horse’s Neck | 40ml cognac | 120ml ginger ale, optional dash of Angostura | About 1.6 |
| Presbyterian | 50ml rye | 60ml ginger ale, 60ml soda water | About 2.0 |
| Moscow Mule | 45ml vodka | 120ml ginger beer, 10ml lime | About 1.8 |
How to Serve It
Built in a highball over plenty of cubed ice, stirred once, with the spiral in place before anything is poured. Serve it straight away, while the ginger ale still has its fizz.
For rye with ginger ale and soda, a Presbyterian; for vodka with ginger beer and lime, a Moscow Mule.
Make it at home
The Spirit
CognacCognac is a brandy distilled twice from white wine in copper pot stills in the Cognac area of western France, aged at least two years in oak and sold at no less than 40% ABV. The letters on the label are minimum ages: VS at least two years, VSOP four, XO ten. A VS or VSOP is what our cocktails assume.
More to explore
Frequently Asked Questions
What is in a Horse’s Neck?
Is a Horse’s Neck made with brandy or bourbon?
Why is it called a Horse’s Neck?
Is there an alcohol-free Horse’s Neck?
Can I use ginger beer instead of ginger ale?
Why is it linked with the Royal Navy?
How strong is a Horse’s Neck?
Where this one sits
Recipe by Jerry Can Spirits · Updated 10 October 2026