Mekhong (spirit) was newly produced in 1941. Despite being known as a whisky, Mekhong is much more a rum. The distilled spirit is made from 95 percent sugar cane/molasses and five percent rice. The distilled spirit is then blended with indigenous herbs and spices to produce its aroma and taste. Mekhong is distilled, blended, and bottled at the Bangyikhan Distillery on the outskirts of Bangkok. It contains 35 percent alcohol by volume, and it is used in a cocktail called the "Thai Sabai". Mekhong Whisky is mentioned several times on the album "Hell's Ditch" by The Pogues, along with other common Thai
Cocktail publication of a bartenders' guide which included cocktail recipes was in 1862 – "How to Mix Drinks; or, The Bon Vivant's Companion", by "Professor" Jerry Thomas. In addition to recipes for punches, sours, slings, cobblers, shrubs, toddies, flips, and a variety of other mixed drinks were 10 recipes for "cocktails". A key ingredient differentiating cocktails from other drinks in this compendium was the use of bitters. Mixed drinks popular today that conform to this original meaning of "cocktail" include the Old Fashioned whiskey cocktail, the Sazerac cocktail, and the Manhattan cocktail. The ingredients listed (spirits, sugar, water, and bitters) match