Chicago Rum Festival returns for 10th year Next weekend is all about rum. The Chicago rum festival returns for its 10th year!

Thank you @abc7chicago.bsky.social for having me on to talk about Cohasset Punch and Chicago Rum Fest! abc7chicago.com/videoClip/18...

TOP LEFT: Label design for Cohasset Punch, c. 1899. Black and white illustration of Minot's Ledge Lighthouse with the sun rising behind it, a two-masted sailboat passing to the left and a steamboat in the distance to the right. Red text reads "Cohasset Punch" split on either side of the lighthouse, with "Prepared by Williams & Newman, Chicago" on an illustration of a seashell below the lighthouse. TOP RIGHT: Newspaper ad for Cohasset Punch, December 1899. Text reads: "Wines and liquors. Have you had a Cohasset Punch? Prepared by Williams & Newman, Chicago, for dinners and receptions. Ready to serve. Direction on each bottle. Sold by all dealers." BELOW: Lewis Williams' headstone, Graceland Cemetery, Chicago. Inscription reads, "Lewis A. Williams / Apr. 15, 1852 / July 7, 1935"

Lewis Williams retired in 1916 and died in 1935, and though we have not located any photos of him, greatness apparently ran in the family — Williams’ grandson was noted Formula One driver and racing instructor Robert Lewis “Bob” Bondurant (1933–2021).

ABOVE: Newspaper ad for Cohasset Punch, October 1898. Text reads: "Have you had a Cohasset Punch at Williams & Newman, 124 Dearborn St.? Answer Quick." BELOW: Newspaper ad for Williams & Newman, August 1907. Text reads: "Williams & Newman / 115 E. Lake St., Chicago / You know us—We make the famous Cohasset Punch"

He sent a telegram to his business partner, Tom Newman, at their Dearborn Street bar to create Chicago’s answer. Upon his return to Chicago, Williams & Newman began selling “Cohasset Punch” at their bar, and began bottling for distribution in 1899.

ABOVE: Williams & Newman letterhead, c. 1912, reading, "Williams & Newman, Wholesale Liquor Dealers / 73-75 W. Lake St / Our Celebrated Old Fashion Cocktails, Cohasset Punch, Cardinal Punch, Celery Rock and Rye". BELOW: Street scene in front of the Williams & Newman saloon, Dearborn Street, north of Madison, c. 1900.

While there (the Boston Glove confirms the Williams family visited Crane in the summer of 1897), Williams overheard a discussion on the superiority of New England rum punches, and, as a Chicago-based bartender and liquor dealer, sensed a challenge.

1905 magazine ad for Williams & Newman with an image of a fancy Gilded Age dinner party. The text reads: "Do you entertain at home? / Williams & Newman Specialties / Cohasset Punch - Cardinal Punch - Old Fashion Cocktail / Ready to Serve / 115 Lake Street - Tel. Central-630 / 120 Dearborn St. - Tel. Central-3279"

Today, April 15, is Lewis Williams’ 174th Birthday! Without Lewis Williams there would be no Cohasset Punch. According to a 1902 issue of “Bonfort’s Wine & Spirit Circular,” Williams had a few years prior visited actor William H. Crane, a family friend, at his estate in Cohasset, Massachusetts.

Today has been two years since we relaunched Cohasset Punch!

We tried the classic Cohasset Punch, the Cohasset Spritz, the Cohasset Zombie (our take on the tiki classic), and the “Big Shoulders,” a Negroni-like cocktail with Cohasset Punch, gin, and a small amount of Jeppson's Malört instead of Campari for an extra Chicago touch.

The 10th Annual Chicago Rum Festival YouTube video by WGN News

Had a blast chatting about 2026 Chicago Rum Fest — and Chicago’s classic rum drink, Cohasset Punch — with Amy Rutledge and Tonya Francisco today on @wgntv.com Daytime Chicago: www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfFE...

A fully complete Easter brunch
Is one with some Cohasset Punch
Buy a bottle or case
To avoid a disgrace
And sip a chilled glass while you munch

Join us at Chicago Rum Fest on April 25!

Streetscape of the 200 block of West Madison street, March 29, 1957: the large "Home of Cohasset Punch" neon sign in the foreground, with additional neon signs for "Val-Lo-Will Chicken" and "Illinois Clothing Mart" behind. Photo by Glenn E. Dahlby, a member of the Fort Dearborn Camera Club.

An overlay showing the site of the photo from 1957 (with the neon "Home of Cohasset Punch" sign) in the context of the modern streetscape. A large parking garage now occupies the site, with a former Walgreens location on the first floor

Coincidentally, one of the best photos of the "Home of Cohasset Punch" was taken on the same date 29 years earlier, March 29, 1957.

In March 1986, the building was purchased by real estate developers Lee Miglin and Paul Beitler who planned to build a skyscraper on the spot. The bar's last day of operation was March 29. The tower was never built, and today a parking garage occupies the site.

Ownership of the bar (and by extension, the punch) passed to Carl's son John Ladner, and when he retired in 1976, to former financial analyst Tommy Ohman. The bar was a downtown Chicago landmark, with a distinctive neon sign depicting Minot's Ledge Lighthouse off Cohasset, Massachusetts.

Cohasset Punch was created c. 1897, and in 1916 the rights were purchased by Carl Ladner, who opened a bar at 207 W. Madison St. The building became a restaurant during Prohibition, but the bar reopened almost immediately after repeal, and the production of Cohasset Punch liqueur resumed thereafter.

Collage of items related to the Cohasset Punch tavern's 1986 closure, clockwise from top: Chicago Sun-Times newspaper headline from March 17, 1986, "Prohibition-era Cohasset Punch to fall for W. Madison skyscraper"; 1980s bottle of Cohasset Punch from near the end of production; "Home of Cohasset Punch" sign at 207 W. Madison c. 1980s; Chicago Tribune map showing the proposed site of the "Miglin-Beitler Skyneedle," which was to occupy the site of the Cohasset Punch bar; Cohasset Punch matchbook c. 1980s; Model of the proposed Miglin-Beitler Skyneedle

Today is a bit of a solemn anniversary in Cohasset Punch world — #OnThisDay exactly 40 years ago, the old Cohasset Punch tavern in the Chicago loop closed. Cohasset Punch could still be found in liquor stores for a few more years (before our revival in 2024), but it was definitely the end of an era.

Mostly-empty bottle of Cohasset Punch on a table at night.

POV when it’s almost time to restock.

“Hey Cohasset Punch, what were you like in the ‘90s?”

Dormant!

Into the archives for some Cohasset LoHasIt and I really need to find that black apron again

Happy National Cocktail Day! (cameo by @evangaylion.bsky.social)

😍

Vitalogy x Cohasset Punch Thursday, March 19 5:00–7:00pm Vitalogy on Dearborn 723 S Dearborn St, Chicago

This Thursday from 5–7pm, try the Gilded Age Chicago classic Cohasset Punch and fun cocktails at Vitalogy on Dearborn (Printer’s Row). See you there!

FUN FACT: “Damned dude” were the exact words McGarry was reported to have called Tom Newman, as the word “dude” meant “dandy” in those days.

Dooley’s Philosophy
• 1½ oz Irish whiskey
• 1 oz Cohasset Punch
• ½ oz lemon juice
• ¼ oz honey syrup (2:1 by volume)
• ¼ oz Yellow Chartreuse or Strega liqueur

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

Here’s a non-traditional Chicago St. Patrick’s Day cocktail, and some fun history to go with it!

Lake Effect
• 3 oz Cohasset Punch
• ½ oz Pineapple Juice
• ½ oz Orange Juice
• ½ oz Lime Juice
• 1 tsp Grenadine

Shake with ice, then strain over new crushed or pebble ice in a tulip or hurricane glass. Add a straw and garnish with an orange slice and a cherry.

Red drink in a tulip-shaped hurricane glass, garnished with an orange slice and Luxardo maraschino cherry. A bottle of Cohasset Punch liqueur and an orange and a lime are also visible.

Severe weather predicted for Chicago tonight, so here’s our answer to the Hurricane cocktail, the “Lake Effect”! The rich cherry and stone fruit flavors of Cohasset Punch blend effortlessly with pineapple, orange, and lime for a drink that’s bright, juicy, and delicious.

Agreed! I probably need to get registered in more states first, but I’m definitely on board (pun intended)

If you order a “rail” drink at a bar, is this what you get? Back in the mid-1930s, Chicago’s famed Cohasset Punch could be had in the “Tip Top Tap” cars of the Hiawatha trains of the Milwaukee Road. Now that Cohasset Punch has returned, we’re waiting on that call from @amtrak.com...

“Have you ever visited Chicago? If so, you no doubt have heard of Cohasset Punch…What the mint julep is to the South, Cohasset Punch is to Chicago.” Bonfort’s Wine & Spirit Circular, August 10, 1902

“Williams & Newman brought the recipe to Chicago where it became a favorite before Prohibition…Cohasset Punches are now a favorite drink again in Chicago.” The Capital Times (Madison, WI), June 11, 1935

“The cherry-colored liqueur has been a Chicago tradition since the 1890s—not one of the best known Windy City traditions, but jealously guarded by a stream of regulars.” The Los Angeles Times, July 4, 1979

“It’s a refreshing sip…Cohasset Punch is a taste of old Chicago.” The Chicago Tribune, January 17, 2024

Happy 189th birthday to the city of Chicago! Despite its New England name, Cohasset Punch has always been associated with Chicago, even being called “the definitive Chicago cocktail.” Try a “taste of old Chicago” today and pick up a bottle of Cohasset Punch!

“Punch” the baby Japanese Macaque holding his emotional support bottle of Cohasset Punch

Really enjoying how often people are posting about “Punch” this week