Best Classic Cocktail Recipes

I first tried the classic cocktail when I was 15 at a dinner party of my father’s friend house. That was fantastic drink and made me always prefer the classic drinks than the modern modified version. Here are a few among the best classic cocktails I have tried that will bring me the nostalgic memories.

Honolulu

This fruity little shooter should be served in a shot glass. The mixture of tropical flavors in the drink is probably what led to the name.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 1.5 tbsp of gin
• 1 tsp of pineapple juice
• 1 tsp of orange juice
• 1 tsp of lemon juice
• 1 tsp of pineapple syrup (from a can)
• 1 drop of Angostura bitters

Directions

1. Add together all the ingredients except Angostura into cocktail shaker.
2. Shake with ice and strain into a shot glass.
3. Lastly add a single drop of Angostura to the drink, and knock back in one.

My Fair Lady

This frothy, fruity cocktail was invented at London’s Savoy Hotel in the 1950s to coincide with a production of the much-loved Lerner and Loewe musical based on George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 1.5 tbsp gin
• 2 tsp orange juice
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp crème de fraise
• 1 egg white
• slice of orange, to garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients into cocktail shaker and shake thoroughly with ice.
2. Strain the cocktail into a cocktail glass.
3. Skewer a slice of orange on a cocktail stick (toothpick) and use to garnish the rim of the glass, if you like.

 

Red Cloud

This classic 1920s cocktail is a refreshing drink with a sharp kick provided by the lemon juice. Serve in a cocktail glass or champagne saucer.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 6 tsp of gin
• 3 tsp of apricot brandy
• 2 tsp of lemon juice
• 1 tsp of grenadine
• dash of Angostura bitters
• half slice of lemon and a cherry, to garnish

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients into cocktail shaker and shake well with ice.
2. Strain the cocktail into a champagne saucer or cocktail glass.
3. Garnish with a half-slice of lemon and a cherry.

 

Balalaika

A recipe from the age when vodka was still enough of a commercial novelty for a drink containing it to be given a name with glamorous connotations. It has a mild spirit flavour due to the vodka, and sharp citrus flavours from the lemon juice.

 

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 6 tsp of vodka
• 3 tsp of Cointreau
• 3 tsp of lemon juice
• slice of orange and a cherry, to garnish

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients into cocktail shaker and shake well with plenty of ice.
2. Strain the cocktail into a cocktail glass.
3. Add an orange-and-cherry garnish.

 

Ti Punch

This is a great favourite in the originally French Caribbean islands. The ‘ti’ is short for the French word ‘petit’ meaning this cocktail is affectionately titled ‘little punch’. Don’t let the name fool you, though – this cocktail can pack quite a punch.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 1 lime
• 3 tbsp of French Caribbean white rum
• 1 tsp of sugar syrup

Directions

1. Reserve one slice of lime, then cut the rest of the lime into wedges and put them in a wide-based rocks glass.
2. Pound and crush them with a blunt instrument to release the juices, but leave all the residue in the glass.
3. Add the syrup and the rum, and plenty of cracked ice. Garnish with the reserved lime slice.

 

Passion Punch

Although it is not really a punch at all, the combination of passion fruit and grape juices in this recipe is a winning one. The acidity of the one is mitigated by the sweetness of the other, with the pineapple syrup adding a viscous texture to the drink.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 6 tsp of light rum
• 1.5 tbsp of red grape juice
• 1.5 tbsp of passion fruit juice
• 1 tsp of pineapple syrup (from a can)
• piece of kumquat rind, to garnish

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients into cocktail shaker and shake well with ice
2. Strain into a rocks glass.
3. Garnish with a piece of kumquat rind, if you like.

 

Artists’ Special

This drink is so-named because it was invented at the Artists’ Club in the rue Pigalle, Paris, in the 1920s. The red ingredient was originally redcurrant syrup, but grenadine can be used to perfectly good effect instead.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 1.5 tbsp of Scotch
• 1.5 tbsp of sweet brown sherry
• 2 tsp of lemon juice
• 2 tsp of grenadine
• half-slice of lemon, to garnish

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients into cocktail shaker and shake well with ice
2. Strain into a cocktail glass.
3. Add a half-slice of lemon, to garnish.

 

Paddy

Another traditional one, this was originally made with the Irish whiskey brand of the same name. In the 1920s, it had equal quantities of whiskey and vermouth and slightly less Angostura, which made for a sweeter result. This is today’s drier formula.

MAKES 1 GLASS

Ingredients

• 6 tsp of Irish whiskey
• 3 tsp of sweet red vermouth
• 3 dashes of Angostura bitters
• half-slice of lemon, to garnish

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients into cocktail shaker and shake well with ice
2. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
3. Garnish with a half-slice of lemon.