Warren G. Harding, the 29th President of the United States, served only two years before passing away in 1923, during one of the most fascinating periods in American history, spanning the end of World War I and the buildup to the Great Depression.
The amendment that legalized prohibition was ratified in 1919, about two years before Harding was sworn into office. So when he became president, the country was accustomed to the laws of prohibition. During Prohibition, manufacturing, selling, bartering, transporting, importing, exporting, delivering, furnishing, or possessing any “intoxicating liquor” was illegal.
However, no law was going to hold the corn-fed party boy back from imbibing. Harding was known as quite the partier and was said to have regularly hosted raucous parties and poker nights at the White House. Alice Longworth, wife of Harding’s Speaker of the House Nicholas Longworth, and Teddy Roosevelt’s wife vividly described the gatherings.
According to reporting from the New York Times, she said, “No rumor could have exceeded the reality; the study was filled with cronies, the air heavy with tobacco smoke, trays with bottles containing every imaginable brand of whiskey stood about, cards and poker chips ready at hand—a general atmosphere of waistcoat unbuttoned, feet on desk, and spittoons alongside.”
So it would be no big surprise that Harding would serve this specialty cocktail at the White House, regardless of the prohibition laws. The vintage Christmastime cocktail became popular in the mid-1800s, so it’s likely one the President enjoyed his whole life. So if you want to party Presidential-style this holiday season, you might want to make yourself a Tom and Jerry.
President Warren G. Harding Served Tom and Jerry Cocktails in the White House
Yes, Tom and Jerry, the thicker cousin of the classic eggnog, was purportedly served during Harding’s short time in office. Like many culinary traditions, the precise origin story of the Tom and Jerry is a bit unclear.
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Reporter Wayne Curtis of Imbibe Magazine walks through two popular theories. The first is that bartender Jerry Thomas created the cocktail. Supposedly, he invented the festive drink at work in 1847 at the Occidental Hotel in San Francisco. However, as David Wondrich cited in his book, “Imbibe!,” a cocktail of the same name was served in Boston three years before the bartender was even born.
Curtis states that the more likely origin story involves a book published in England in the early 1820s. The book was called, “Life in London, or The Day and Night Scenes of Jerry Hawthorn Esq. and his Elegant Friend Corinthian Tom.” That book was eventually adapted into a hit play called “Life in London; or The Day and Night Scenes of Tom and Jerry in their Rambles and Sprees through the Metropolis,” which came to the United States of America in 1823.
The drink was then allegedly created as a marketing gimmick—a quick riff on the eggnog. Well, gimmick or not, it stuck around and became incredibly embedded in American Christmas culture. Though less popular today, the drink is still enjoyed by thousands of Americans this time of year.
How To Make the Tom and Jerry
The Tom and Jerry is a classic holiday drink made with two components: a sweetened egg mixture and your liquor of choice. Whiskey is most common, but brandy and rum are both popular alternatives. The egg mixture, which can be made ahead of time and frozen for easy access, contains sugar, spices, butter, and vanilla.
To prepare the cocktail, fill a mug with hot water and your preferred liquor. Then, top with a big spoonful or two of the Tom and Jerry batter, stir, and enjoy. Non-alcoholic versions can be made by replacing the liquor with warm milk, hot cocoa, or eggnog. Sip and enjoy!
