For the curious home bartenders out there, I've set aside a dedicated list of all the ingredients you'll need. Now let's dive into the history.
The Suffering Bastard was born in Cairo, Egypt, in 1942, at the height of the Second World War. Bartender Joe Scialom, a Sephardic Jew from Cairo, ran the bar of the legendary Shepheard's Hotel, the favorite place of British officers fighting Rommel in the desert. One morning, a group of hungover officers begged for an emergency hangover cure, and Scialom invented a mix of bourbon, gin, ginger beer and lime.
The drink, with its defiantly improper name, became so popular that it was soon shipped in quantity to the front, and rumor has it that a shipment of Suffering Bastards was key to the British victory at El Alamein. True or not, Scialom's creation survived the war and became an unlikely icon of wartime bartending, later recreated at the Savoy and the Pierre in New York.
To make this recipe shine, pair a great story with great tools. A barman kit like the one I use from Amazon is the perfect starting point: compact, complete, and ready. For those ready to take the next step, a professional cocktail bar station is a real game-changer — think of it as your personal speakeasy.