On Oct. 11, 1918, during the flu pandemic, a Public Health Service physician in Baltimore, alarmed by a trend he'd noted, sent an urgent note to Surgeon General Rupert Blue. "Sir," he began, "a strong and growing belief exists in the minds of the public in this city ... that alcoholic drinks act as a preventative of influenza." This belief, he went on, "is now so strong among the laity that alcoholic drinks are being purchased and consumed in enormous quantities for the purpose of preventing influenza."
Ninety-one years later, hardly anyone believes a stiff cocktail can prevent the flu. Treating its symptoms, however, is another matter.
Many grandmothers still swear by a hot toddy (a warm mixture of whiskey, lemon and honey) for cold and flu relief. And bartenders, normally dispensers of pleasure, have lately been playing doctor behind the bar.
Consider the Flu Shot, a drink on the menu at Drop Off Service, a bar on Avenue A in Manhattan. It's a mixture of garlic-infused honey, jalapeño-infused tequila, orange-lemon-ginger purée and a few drops of liquid echinacea. The Flu Shot — which is meant to be slugged, not sipped — sounds like a cheeky gimmick. But its creator, Signe Grant, is earnest.
"You've got your vitamin C in there, and the garlic is an antiviral, and the ginger is also an antiviral and an immunity booster," she said. Ms. Grant is also the creator of another remedy, the Throat Coat, in which honey-and-pepper-infused vodka and B&B, a French liqueur, are combined in a snifter with a spoonful of honey. This one is meant for sipping, and is tasty enough for taking with symptoms or without — which is decidedly more than one can say about Robitussin.
As a prescription-writing bartender, Ms. Grant is not alone. Albert Trummer, whose Chinatown bar, Apotheke, specializes in pharmaceutically themed cocktails, has been busy formulating new drinks for the current flu season. One involves yellow Chartreuse, thyme, lavender and a stick of cinnamon "for the throat"; another involves warm rum, hibiscus and rosehips.
At the Harrison, on Greenwich Street, the beverage director, Adam Petronzio, has been prescribing a drink called the Western Smash to his sniffling customers. Lemon balm, which infuses a syrup that Mr. Petronzio mixes with whiskey and mint, is the medicinal ingredient, due to its purported antioxidant and antiviral properties.
Time to consult a doctor. Can there be any therapeutic benefit to a cocktail? "From a pathophysiologic perspective, there's no data that will support that," said Dr. Ronald B. Turner, a cold researcher and pediatrics professor at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. But Dr. Turner did allow a little wiggle room for the basis of Ms. Grant's Throat Coat.
"There is some evidence that honey, or other sweet demulcent compounds, can have a benefit to coughs," he said. O.K. then. How about a honey-heavy cocktail?
"A placebo at best," Dr. Turner said. "But I don't think there's any reason to avoid it. If it makes you feel better, go for it."
