Ada Coleman was a pioneering English bartender and one of the first women to gain international renown behind the bar.

Best known as head bartender of the American Bar at London’s Savoy Hotel, a position she held for more than two decades from 1903, she became a quiet revolutionary in a profession dominated by men. Beloved by her guests for her warmth, wit, and impeccable service, she counted luminaries such as Mark Twain, the Prince of Wales, and Sir Charles Hawtrey among her regulars, creating drinks tailored to their tastes

Her most enduring contribution to cocktail history is the Hanky Panky, a bold, bittersweet riff on the sweet martini that marries gin, sweet vermouth, and fernet, first mixed for Hawtrey and named after his delighted exclamation: “By Jove, that is the real hanky panky!” More than a century later, the drink still appears on menus around the world, a living testament to her craft and legacy

Coleman’s career at the Savoy marked a golden age for the American Bar and helped carve out space for women in bartending at the highest level, even though another female head bartender would not be appointed there until the 21st century. She remains an enduring icon of hospitality: a figure of grace, skill, and understated defiance, whose legacy continues to inspire bartenders and cocktail lovers across generations