white rat

2/3 Gin (2 oz Beefeater)
2 dash Dry Vermouth (3/4 oz Noilly Prat)
2 dash Maraschino (1/2 oz Luxardo)
2 dash White Curaçao (1/2 oz Senior)
1 dash Picon Bitters (1/4 oz Amer Picon)

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Two Saturdays ago, I searched for my post-shift nightcap in Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars: 1903-1933. There, I found a curious gin drink called the White Rat which reminded me of Chuck Taggart's Hoskins Cocktail with dry vermouth in the mix as well as a somewhat different ratio. Moreover, with the Amer Picon in the build, it would not be a white drink, but certainly a tasty one, and therefore, I gave it a go.
The White Rat shared a juniper and nutty cherry aroma. The cherry continued on into the sip, and the swallow gave forth gin, bitter orange, and more Maraschino flavors. With less Picon and more curaçao (not to mention the addition of dry vermouth) than a Hoskins, the White Rat as I interpreted the recipe was softer and more driven by the Maraschino than bitter complexity.