Rhett Butler Cocktail

By
Colleen Graham
Photo of Colleen Graham
Colleen Graham
Freelance writer and cocktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks.
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Updated on 04/29/21
Citrus sour cocktails on silver tray, close up

Rob Fiocca Photography / Getty Images

Prep: 3 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 3 mins
Serving: 1 serving
Yield: 1 cocktail
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
54 Calories
0g Fat
7g Carbs
0g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 1
Amount per serving
Calories 54
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 1mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 7g 2%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Total Sugars 4g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 18mg 91%
Calcium 11mg 1%
Iron 0mg 0%
Potassium 44mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

It should be rather obvious that the Rhett Butler cocktail is named after the classic figure from "Gone With the Wind." It doesn't stop here, there is also a Scarlet O'Hara cocktail and both have the smooth, sweet base of Southern Comfort.

It's interesting to see that the gentleman's tribute drink is a little more of a sour drink than the sweet cranberry of the Southern belle's cocktail. Both are great drinks, especially if you have a bottle of SoCo around, and the pair are perfect for a party's feature drink menu.

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces Southern Comfort

  • 1/2 ounce orange curaçao liqueur

  • 1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice

  • 1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice

  • Lemon twist, for garnish

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. In a cocktail shaker, pour the Southern Comfort, orange curaçao, and lemon and lime juices. Fill with ice.

  3. Shake well.

  4. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

  5. Garnish with a lemon twist. Serve and enjoy.

Tips

  • Freshly squeezed citrus juices will make a better Rhett Butler cocktail. For the lime, squeeze the juice of half a lime into the shaker; the lemon will require a little less juice than what half the fruit yields.
  • Though orange curaçao is often used in this cocktail, you can use other light orange liqueur options if you like. Triple sec is a great alternative, and premium brands are preferred for a well-balanced drink.
  • Adjust the orange, lemon, and lime flavors to suit your taste. You might also want to adapt the recipe for a particular strength of Southern Comfort. For instance, with 100-proof SoCo, adding a little more juice may be a good choice to tame down the extra alcohol.

Recipe Variations

As you might imagine, the name Rhett Butler has been used a number of times for various cocktail recipes. They don't always agree, though this recipe is one of the more common versions you'll find.

  • A few suggest replacing the two juices with 1/2 ounce of sour mix. This makes sense because the syrup is typically flavored with lemon and lime, though the extra sugar will result in a sweeter drink.
  • Some recipes simply call for whiskey rather than the fruity whiskey blend of Southern Comfort. To keep the Southern charm, choose something regional like Tennessee whiskey or Kentucky bourbon (well-crafted moonshine would be appropriate as well). You'll also find that some of these use blue curaçao, so while the orange accent remains, the drink will be a completely different color.

How Strong Is a Rhett Butler Cocktail?

The Rhett Butler is the more robust of the two "Gone With the Wind" cocktails. That's rather fitting given the character's bolder personality. Yet, Southern Comfort is bottled at a variety of strengths: 100-proof, 70-proof, and 42-proof. Taking the middle ground, the drink shakes up to 21 percent ABV (42 proof). This places it in the realm of the vodka cosmopolitan and with 100-proof So Co, it becomes similar to the whiskey Manhattan.