We’ve gathered together recipes for our top 10 most popular and best-known cocktails. With these basic cocktails at your fingertips, you’ll be the bartender of the year!
But don’t be afraid to vary quantities and even ingredients in your search for the perfect cocktail!
Cosmopolitan
- 1½ shots vodka
- 1 shot orange liqueur e.g. cointreau or triple sec
- 1 shot cranberry juice
- A dash of lime juice
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the vodka, liqueur, cranberry juice and lime juice. Shake well. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime twist.
Daiquiri
- 1 shot white rum
- 1½ shots lime juice
- ½ shot sugar syrup*
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add rum, lime juice and sugar syrup. Shake well, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Serve garnished with a slice of orange.
Harvey Wallbanger
- 2 shots vodka
- 6 shots orange juice
- 1 shot Galliano
Put some ice cubes in a highball glass then add the vodka and orange juice. Stir lightly. Top with Galliano.
Margarita
- ½ lime
- Coarse salt
- 2 shots tequila
- ¾ shot orange liqueur e.g. cointreau or triple sec
- 1 shot lime juice
- 1 teaspoon caster sugar
Rub the lime slice around the edge of a cocktail glass. Dip the damp edge in a plate of coarse salt. Leave to dry.
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the tequila, triple sec, lime juice and sugar. Shake well. Strain carefully into the ready-prepared glass.
Martini
- 2 parts dry gin
- 1 part dry vermouth
Chill a cocktail shaker or jug. Add the gin and vermouth and stir well. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass and serve garnished with an olive.
- Use equal parts of gin and vermouth for Gin & It.
- For vodka martini, replace the gin with vodka and the cocktail should be shaken with ice, not stirred.
Pina colada
- 2 shots white rum
- 4 shots pineapple juice
- 1 shot coconut cream
- 1 shot single cream (optional)
Put all the ingredients in a blender with some crushed ice. Whiz until smooth then pour into a highball or Collins glass. Garnish with a wedge of pineapple.
Rusty Nail
- 2 shots Scotch whiskey
- 1 shot Drambuie
Chill a cocktail shaker or jug. Add the whiskey and Drambuie. Stir well. Serve in a tumbler over crushed ice.
Screwdriver
- 2 oz good quality vodka
- 5 oz fresh orange juice
Pour the vodka and orange juice over ice into a highball glass. Garnish with a slice of orange for a potent and refreshing drink.
Singapore Sling
- 1 shot Gin
- ½ shot Cherry Brandy
- ¼ shot Cointreau
- ¼ shot Benedictine
- 4 shots Pineapple Juice
- ½ shot Lime Juice
- ¼ shot Grenadine
- A tiny dash of Angostura Bitters
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Pour in all the ingredients. Shake well. Strain into long chilled glasses. Serve garnished with a slice of pineapple and a cherry.
Tom Collins
- 2 shots gin
- 1 shot lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon caster sugar
- Soda water
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Add the gin, lemon juice and caster sugar. Shake well. Strain into a tall ice-filled glass. Top up with soda water. Garnish with a slice of orange and a cherry on a stick.
- Ideally use a Collins glass, which is taller than a highball glass and usually frosted.
- Tom Collins is a popular drink because it’s very hard to make a bad one! It’s a drink for socialising with and not getting too finicky about.
*Sugar syrup
Mix equal quantities of water and caster sugar together in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Allow to cool and store covered in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.