Plymouth and Gangsters in Chicago
Pictures
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It's Monday afternoon in Chicago, around 2:00 PM.
Most people have, you know, jobs. Some of us lucky
mugs, however, are perfectly free to get aboard a luxury
charter bus reserved by Plymouth Gin to see some of
the best and bloodiest places in Chicago gang-land
history. Did I mention there were cocktails?
There were cocktails. I'm in.
We start at the Green Door Tavern - one of oldest
buildings left on the North Side of Chicago after the
Great Fire of 1871. Rumor has it that the place survived
those dark days of the 13th Amendment (read:
Prohibition (shudder)) the same way most places of
style did - by operating as a speakeasy.
From there we get on the bus, which is delightfully
chock-full of Plymouth Gin and some fresh cocktails
mixed up by Plymouth's International Brand
Ambassador Simon Ford. Choice #1 - The North Sider:
made with Plymouth, grapefruit juice, and a splash of
whatever juice was around (in this case, orange juice.)
The North Side was generally the ritzier, more wealthy
side of Chicago, so there was usually some fresh fruit
juices available for mixing besides lemons and limes.
Choice #2 - The South Sider: made with Plymouth, fresh
mint, lime juice, and sugar/simple syrup, and a little
soda water; basically, a gin Mojito, and it's fabulous.
From The Green Door, we set off to some other
landmarks of Chicago gangster infamy. Holy Name
Cathedral, where Al Capone's arch-rival Earl "Hymie"
Weiss was killed on his way to the flower shop
headquarters of his North Side Gang - a bullet hole still
remains in the cornerstone.
After that, we tour all through the downtown "Loop"
area, and to the South Side where Alfonse Capone ran
his Chicago Outfit with an iron fist, making over a
million dollars a year (and that's in the '20's folks) with
gambling, prostitution, and bootlegging.
With stops at the place where "Machine Gun" Jack
McGurn performed the St. Valentine's Day Massacre
and the alley where John Dillinger was "allegedly"
gunned down rounding out the tour, it is definitely time
for more drinks at the end. Luckily, our last stop is The
Violet Hour, a new cocktail lounge that specializes in
classic Prohibition-era cocktails using only the finest
ingredients available. Appropriately enough after an
afternoon of seeing some of the bloodiest spots in
Chicago's history, I find the Corpse Reviver #2 to be a
welcome way to finish a great tour of the city and stops
at some of the best places to drink in it still to this day.
Most people have, you know, jobs. Some of us lucky
mugs, however, are perfectly free to get aboard a luxury
charter bus reserved by Plymouth Gin to see some of
the best and bloodiest places in Chicago gang-land
history. Did I mention there were cocktails?
There were cocktails. I'm in.
We start at the Green Door Tavern - one of oldest
buildings left on the North Side of Chicago after the
Great Fire of 1871. Rumor has it that the place survived
those dark days of the 13th Amendment (read:
Prohibition (shudder)) the same way most places of
style did - by operating as a speakeasy.
From there we get on the bus, which is delightfully
chock-full of Plymouth Gin and some fresh cocktails
mixed up by Plymouth's International Brand
Ambassador Simon Ford. Choice #1 - The North Sider:
made with Plymouth, grapefruit juice, and a splash of
whatever juice was around (in this case, orange juice.)
The North Side was generally the ritzier, more wealthy
side of Chicago, so there was usually some fresh fruit
juices available for mixing besides lemons and limes.
Choice #2 - The South Sider: made with Plymouth, fresh
mint, lime juice, and sugar/simple syrup, and a little
soda water; basically, a gin Mojito, and it's fabulous.
From The Green Door, we set off to some other
landmarks of Chicago gangster infamy. Holy Name
Cathedral, where Al Capone's arch-rival Earl "Hymie"
Weiss was killed on his way to the flower shop
headquarters of his North Side Gang - a bullet hole still
remains in the cornerstone.
After that, we tour all through the downtown "Loop"
area, and to the South Side where Alfonse Capone ran
his Chicago Outfit with an iron fist, making over a
million dollars a year (and that's in the '20's folks) with
gambling, prostitution, and bootlegging.
With stops at the place where "Machine Gun" Jack
McGurn performed the St. Valentine's Day Massacre
and the alley where John Dillinger was "allegedly"
gunned down rounding out the tour, it is definitely time
for more drinks at the end. Luckily, our last stop is The
Violet Hour, a new cocktail lounge that specializes in
classic Prohibition-era cocktails using only the finest
ingredients available. Appropriately enough after an
afternoon of seeing some of the bloodiest spots in
Chicago's history, I find the Corpse Reviver #2 to be a
welcome way to finish a great tour of the city and stops
at some of the best places to drink in it still to this day.
| North Siders, South Siders, and Plymouth Gin in Chicago |
Pictures
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