Sherry Cobbler

The Sherry Cobbler is a 19th-century American cooler built from sherry, sugar and orange, shaken or churned and poured over a glass packed with crushed ice, then crowned with seasonal fruit and a sprig of mint and drunk through a straw. Long, low in strength and gently sweet, it tastes of nutty, raisined sherry brightened by fresh orange and a little sugar, all kept bracingly cold by the ice. It was one of the most popular drinks in 19th-century America, beloved of "ladies as well as gentlemen", and it helped make the drinking straw a fixture of the bar. It is a member of the cobbler family — any wine or spirit shaken with sugar and citrus over crushed ice — of which the sherry version is the original and the most famous.