South

There are no less than three competing stories as to how the Southside cocktail came to be. Perhaps the most interesting of them hails from Chicago. In the 1920s, Chicago was a city under violent gang rule. Three bootleggers controlled the city, and a hard line was drawn between North and South Chicago. On the North Side, people drank gin and ginger ale, which, consequently, is called a North Side cocktail. South Side mobsters didn't have as much access to quality liquor and were forced to use stronger flavors to mask the taste of bad gin. The Southside cocktail is an example of one of the most successful recipes for doing just that. There are a couple of fun spins on this cocktail as well. Try adding soda water and serving it over ice for a Southside Fizz, or stick with the coupe and add a healthy dose of champagne for a Southside Royale.