What is your favorite Cocktail?

[Skyfall]

(I thought I would revive this topic again)

Most people think "Cocktails" and "Mixed Drinks" are synonymous. They are not.

Historically:

A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink that contains three or more ingredients—at least one of the ingredients must be a spirit, one sweet/sugary and one sour/bitter.

Cocktails were originally a mixture of spirits, sugar, water, and bitters. The term is now often used for almost any mixed drink that contains alcohol, including mixers, mixed shots, etc.A cocktail today usually contains one or more kinds of spirit and one or more mixers, such as soda or fruit juice. Additional ingredients may be sugar, honey, milk, cream, and various herbs.

The first recorded use of the word cocktail in the United States is said to be in The Farmer's Cabinet on April 28, 1803.

ORIGIN: A French apothecary by the name of Peychaud (of bitters fame) served a mixed brandy drink in a French eggcup. Eventually the drink was named coquetier, the French term for an eggcup. Peychaud’s guests shortened the name to “cocktay,” and eventually it became “cocktail.”

What is your favorite Cocktail? Provide your recipe.

3 WAY TIE

1) Ramos Gin Fizz:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 oz gin

1/2 oz lime juice

1/2 oz lemon juice

1 1/4 oz simple syrup

2 oz half & half or cream

1 small egg white

2 dashes fleurs d'orange (orange flower water)

Club soda

Preparation:

1. Place all of the ingredients except the club soda into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes.
   
2. Shake vigorously (more than normal to ensure the egg and cream are well mixed).
   
3. Strain into a highball glass filled with ice.
   
4. Top with club soda.
   

2) Traditional Lime Daiquiri:

Ingredients:

2 cups crushed ice, plus extra for chilling glass

2 ounces light rum

1-ounce freshly squeezed lime juice, strained of pulp

1/2-ounce Simple Syrup, recipe follows

Directions

If your glass is not chilled, do so by placing some crushed ice in it and set it aside while you prepare the cocktail.

Place the 2 cups of crushed ice into a cocktail shaker. Pour the rum, lime juice, and simple syrup over the ice, cover, and shake well. Remove the ice from your serving glass and strain the drink into it. Serve immediately.

3) Caipirinha:

Ingredients

1 lime

1 tablespoon superfine sugar

2 ounces Cachaça*

Crushed ice

Directions

*Cachaça is a Brazilian brandy made from sugar cane.

Cut up a lime into 8 wedges. Muddle the wedges in a rocks glass with sugar. Add Cachaça and top with ice. Stir and serve.

Runner Up: A good ol' Traditional Fresh Margarita on the rocks!

[Magpie]

2 classics both outstanding

Dry Martini

Good slug of your favourite Gin ( Tanqueray or Bombay Sapphire for me) , pour vermouth into cocktail shaker full of ice , rinse around and pour out, pour your favourite Gin, as I said a good slug, shake well and pour into a chilled martini glass, add olives or lemon zest to suit. Sit back relax and enjoy with your choice of CC

Margarita

1 part Tequila of your choice

1 part Triple sec or Cointreau or Grand Marnier

1 part lime juice ( 2/3 fresh lime juice and 1/3 Roses lime cordial)

Add to cocktail shaker full of ice and shake vigorously

Serve on the rocks with ice rimmed glass , alternatively serve straight up

Enjoy!

[riazp]

if its booze i'll drink it

[Skyfall]

Skyfall -- where is the booze in all that? Those sound more like sweet juices.

Gin in the Fizz, Rum in the Daiquiri, and Cachaca in the Caipirinah.

I don't mix whiskey or bourbon, that's for women only, and I only have one ingredient in my martinis.

[dafrey23]

I'm a Manhattan kind of guy, but I tweak mine a little...

2 oz bourbon (typically Buffalo Trace, Bendheim, or Wellers, I lean towards wheated bourbons for this though)

1 oz sweet vermouth

3 dash bitters (i use orange bitters)

3 maraschino cherries (use the Luxardo ones)

[dangolf18]

Mojito or Gin Fizz

[potpest]

I used to make a lot of cocktails at home but lately haven't bothered as much, however I still drink Americano's regularly, hands down my favourite cocktail, and a great aperitif. Traditionally stirred, however I prefer them shaken

Recipe is simple

2 shot Campari Bitter 2 shot Martini Rosso sweet vermouth Top up with

Soda (club soda)

It's not to everyone's tastes however it's very similar to a non alcoholic drink called "bitter kas" which I discovered and was obsessed with one summer when I was on Holiday in Lanzarote as a young kid. The first time I tried an americano I was transported back to those times and it's become my regular drink since...

[potpest]

I recommend this site for recipes; http://www.diffordsguide.com/cocktails

I had the original book years ago which got me into cocktails. It's by far the most professional and comprehensive cocktail recipe site I've ever come across.

[Habana Mike]

Sazerac - according to lore, the original American cocktail......

Fill an old-fashioned glass with 1 cup ice and set aside. In a second old-fashioned glass, stir together sugar, Peychaud's bitters, and ½ teaspoon water until sugar is completely dissolved, about 30 seconds. Add rye whiskey (or brandy, the original base), and remaining ½ cup ice, stir well for at least 15 seconds. I like to do 1/3 brandy and 2/3 rye for more complexity.

From the first glass, discard ice, then add absinthe. Holding glass horizontally, roll it between your thumbs and forefingers so that absinthe completely coats the interior, then discard excess. Strain rye whiskey mixture into chilled, absinthe-coated glass. Squeeze lemon peel over drink, making sure oils fall into glass, then twist the peel over the drink and rub the rim (do not drop it in), serve and enjoy!

"The Sazerac was invented by an apothecary named Antoine Amedee Peychaud in New Orleans in the 1830s as a remedy for a variety of his customers’ ailments. Over the next two decades, the Sazerac grew in popularity and was officially branded, reportedly becoming the first cocktail invented in America.

The cocktail was named after Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils, the imported cognac originally used for the cocktail. To accommodate American tastes and because of the difficulty of obtaining cognac, the recipe was later altered to replace the French brandy with rye whisky."

[rusty]

i'm partial to a Singapore sling in the summer by the pool

30 ml gin

15 ml cherry brandy

120 ml pineapple juice

15 ml lime juice

30 ml Cointreau

30 ml Dom Benedictine

10 ml grenadine

also had a " Gin Laden " recently, another summer cocktail

30ml Gin

30ml Cointreau

splash of lemoncello

squeeze of lime juice

crushed ice

but really the rusty nail is the prince of cocktails imho

[kws2004]

I like a good "sex on the beach" most and of course a cuba libre!

[Dirtdigger]

Sailor jerry spiced rum and diet with a lime

[bresdogsr]

I'm a Manhattan kind of guy, but I tweak mine a little...

2 oz bourbon (typically Buffalo Trace, Bendheim, or Wellers, I lean towards wheated bourbons for this though)

1 oz sweet vermouth

3 dash bitters (i use orange bitters)

3 maraschino cherries (use the Luxardo ones)

I'm a Manhattan guy as well. Usually just a dash of vermouth with Angostura Bitters for me. I'll have to try your recipie.

[davidsan]

Rum old fashioned

[Skyfall]

A recent revival of old classic cocktails has made me fall in love with this little beauty from the 60 's.

Aqua Velva

1 oz. Gin

1 oz. Vodka

1/2 oz. Blue Curaçao

Shaken on ice

Poured in a highball filled with ice

Topped off with sprite or 7up

Garnished with lime wedge

Very refreshing!

[melies]

Martini! There is only one! (Having one right now)

Gin, depending on the glass, I have three sizes to fit each night, I love the traditional tanqueray, beefeater and such, but as of now I think the best gins are London 1, Plymouth and 209.

Vermouth. Cinzano is great and martini does a good job, but Noilly Prat is the best choice.

Olives. Gordal Spanish olives are the weapon of choice, Greek fat olives are pretty good, but never generic ones (easy mistake)

Preparation: 3 parts gin (depending on the glass size) few drops of vermouth (I prefer only a few drops but if you want to make a classic one I suggest 1 part) all I'm the shaker and stir. Slowly. Until you hurt your hand of the cold. Serve on a chilled martini glass with 2 olives.

Never:

- and I really mean never! Vodka! If you use vodka that is a vodka martini not a martini!

- lemon peel, that is for other cocktails (vesper, vodkatini

- cheap stuff (please people we are humans not savages)

- glasses or ice, that's for other stuff

And last but not least, if you are in to the best Martinis, stir don't shake. Shake is a Bond fashion that works to dilute the drink, perfect for the baccarat table or the martini lunch, not for the perfect drink (although it's acceptable for not getting drunk)

Note: if you want to make a classic martini you need also a few drops of angostura, that's the father/in law recipe

Have fun

[westg]

Dry Martini...and a good long island ice tea...I don't know how to make a LIIT, but love paying for them when they are really good.

^^^^ Nice combo melies .

[NMJoe]

Bourbon and hold the ice.

Also, I love a good, very dry, vodka martini.

[dafrey23]

I'm a Manhattan guy as well. Usually just a dash of vermouth with Angostura Bitters for me. I'll have to try your recipie.

Make sure you use a good vermouth. I use Punt E Mes. It just seems to work for me.

[TM-US]

A sidecar for me, using a decent cognac. I'm not much of a cocktail drinker, though.

It really depends on the skill of the barman. I like the Sazerac, but made with cognac rather than rye.

There's a cocktail made with Campari, grapefruit juice and vodka that I like in the summer, but I don't know the name.

[Wahlgren]

I love the old fashioned.

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[Larsy]

Love me some mojito's and gin & tonics

[Newkarian]

Any of the old classics, that is mostly booze and not sweet. Love a good manhattan perfect with a twist, and made with a good rye.

Traditional lime daquiri, dry martini filthy dirty, old fashion, dark and stormy with really spicy ginger beer. All of these are up there for me.

[RonLin]

I have to agree with some of the guys above; all the classics are pretty good - Old Fashioned, Manhattan, Martini, Whiskey Sour.

I recently started to learning to mix some of the classics in my home bar, and getting it set up with all the essentials.

One of my faves is 42nd Street:

4 parts good Bourbon (Makers Mark does the trick)

1 part Grand Marnier

1 part Cointreau

1 part dry Vermouth (the same Noilly Prat you use for your Martinis will do)

Chill a coctail glas - with ice or in the freezer.

Stir all the good stuff on plenty of ice.

Strain into the cocktail glass onto a cherry and wring out a lemon peel above the drink and rub the edges of the glass with the peel before dropping it into the glass.

Enjoy!

A few of those, and you will fall asleep with a smile on your face...

[RonLin]

Here's a little pic of the "bar" and of my 42nd Street from last weekend.

(sorry for the watch - I posted these pictures on a Swedish watch forum as well...)