Why was my Last Word cocktail red? Last night I ordered a Last Word cocktail, which I've had a few times before.  When it came, the waiter told me that the bartender had never made one before.  It was red.  It was very red.  It was also quite strongly cherry flavored.

A Last Word is usually made with equal parts:


Green Chartreuse
Maraschino liqueur
Lime juice
Dry gin


What could've caused this drink to be so red?  (I had to leave quickly or I would've pressed the bartender!)  My only theory so far is that he used a cherry liqueur instead of maraschino.
More likely is that he used the syrup that maraschino "cherries" are stored in.  It's sometimes used by those who don't know better in things like Shirley Temples.  It is bright, bright red, very sweet, very strongly flavored of cherries (or more properly a sort of sickly, artificial interpretation of the flavor).  I hope it's obvious that I'm not a fan of this stuff.

If this was his first time making the drink, it seems likely that he misinterpreted the term maraschino liqueur, which is altogether different.  It's distilled from marasca cherries (which are actually quite sour and bitter, not sweet) and has a much more subtle, complex flavor.

Quite frankly, I'd consider this a pretty dumb error - it's like using orange juice instead of orange liqueur.  If the bar doesn't carry maraschino liqueur, then they can't make a proper Last Word.  Brands like Luxardo are pretty ubiquitous at good cocktail bars in the US these days, so there's not much excuse for lacking it.

My advice is either to buy this fellow a good craft cocktail book, or stick to ordering beer and wine from him from now on.