In May 1919, Al Capone moved to Chicago where he worked for another big shot in the underworld, Johnny Torrio. Alois soon joined him, as Capone called him with an offer he couldn’t refuse: “Alois, I want you here. I'm opening a bar and together, we’ll turn it into a gold mine. Come as soon as you can—you’ll run it with me.” And so Alois got into the limousine Capone had sent for him, and the very next day he was standing behind the bar of the Four Deuces.
The establishment, named after its street number, was part bar, part gambling den, part brothel — and part Torrio’s office. Capone also spent a lot of time there and Alois soon noticed his weakness for gin with soda and lemon. He decided to improve Capone’s favorite drink and created a highball made of gin, cherry cocktail syrup, soda, lemon and rose water. In honor of their new partnership, he named the cocktail Lucky Deuces.
Lucky Deuces