What ingredients are in a English Highball?

3/4 oz Brandy, 3/4 oz Gin, 3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth, Top Carbonated Water, 1 Lemon peel

What glass do you use for a English Highball?

A English Highball is traditionally served in a Highball glass.

How strong is a English Highball?

A English Highball has an estimated ABV of 16.44%.

How many calories are in a English Highball?

A English Highball contains approximately 150 calories per serving.

English Highball

Glass Highball glass

Difficulty Medium

Calories ~150 kcal

ABV 16.44%

Ingredients

Brandy 3/4 oz
Gin 3/4 oz
Sweet Vermouth 3/4 oz
Carbonated Water Top
Lemon peel 1

Instructions

Pour brandy, gin, and sweet vermouth into a highball glass over ice cubes. Fill with carbonated water. Add the twist of lemon peel, stir, and serve. (Ginger ale may be substituted for carbonated water, if preferred.)

Refreshing Strong

The English Highball is a classic long drink that combines brandy, gin, and sweet vermouth topped with carbonated water and garnished with a lemon peel. It is a spirit-forward highball that layers the richness of brandy, the botanical character of gin, and the herbal sweetness of vermouth in a refreshing, effervescent format. The drink reflects the British tradition of long mixed drinks.

History & Origins

The highball format — spirit topped with a carbonated mixer in a tall glass — became widely popular in Britain and America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The English Highball as a specific three-spirit build appears in classic bartending literature of the early 1900s. Its precise authorship is disputed and unrecorded.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: brandy grape and oak, juniper from the gin, and herbal sweet vermouth with a bright carbonated lift. Palate: medium-bodied and complex with grape, botanical, and herbal notes intertwined and lightened by the soda water. Finish: dry, slightly bitter, and refreshing with a citrus twist from the lemon peel.

brandy juniper herbal citrus refreshing

Pro Tip

Pour over ice in a highball glass and top with high-quality carbonated water just before serving, then garnish with a lemon peel twist expressed over the glass to release the citrus oils.

Techniques Used

Building

Data verified September 2017

Nutrition Facts →

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