APEROL SPRITZ COCKTAIL

There’s a reason the Aperol Spritz is making a comeback. It’s one of the most popular apéritifs in Italy, and it’s as tasty as it is refreshing. Low in alcohol, aromatic with citrus and slightly bitter, Aperol pairs perfectly with chilled prosecco. The Aperol Spritz is as easy to make as it is to drink, meaning it’s perfect for any time of day and any occasion. It doesn’t hurt that it has a gorgeous coral hue.

Meeting friends for an after-work Spritz is a long-established Italian tradition and one that’s easily replicated anywhere.

INGREDIENTS IN THE APEROL SPRITZ COCKTAIL  

4 ¹⁄₂ oz Brut prosecco

2 ¹⁄₂ oz Aperol

1  Lime wheel

1 oz Club soda

Glass: Collins

HOW TO MAKE THE APEROL SPRITZ COCKTAIL

Pour the prosecco into a Collins glass filled with ice.

Add the Aperol and lime wheel, and top with club soda.

OTHER INFORMATION

In the Aperol Spritz the fizzy soda and prosecco balance the spirit’s bitterness.

CIDER HOUSE RULES COCKTAIL

Billy Grise, the food and beverage director at Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar in Covington, Ky., is a big fan of author John Irving, who penned the cocktail’s namesake novel, a coming-of-age story of an orphan who leaves his home to explore the world. “My inspiration for the cocktail was to create something that kept the essence of the end of summer while equally welcoming the fall.” Feel free to substitute the strawberry cider with another flavor.

This recipe originally appeared as part of “5 Build-in-the-Glass Bourbon Cocktails to Make at Home.”

INGREDIENTS IN THE CIDER HOUSE RULES COCKTAIL  

2 oz Buffalo Trace bourbon

5 oz Strawberry cider (from CiderBoys, Kopparberg or another cidery)

¹⁄₂ oz Honey syrup (equal parts honey and water)

¹⁄₄ oz Fresh lemon juice

1 dash Bittercube Blackstrap bitters

Garnish: Mint sprig - Grated cinnamon - Powdered sugar

Glass:Hurricane  

HOW TO MAKE THE CIDER HOUSE RULES COCKTAIL

Add all the ingredients into a Hurricane glass over ice.

Garnish with a mint sprig, grated cinnamon and powdered sugar.

TENNESSEE TWO STEP COCKTAIL

A strong whiskey concoction and a fizzy lemon-juice mix combine in an elegant dance.

INGREDIENTS IN THE TENNESSEE TWO STEP COCKTAIL  

¹⁄₂ oz Gran Gala

¹⁄₂ oz Punt e Mes

1 ¹⁄₂ oz George Dickel Old No. 8 Tennessee Whisky

2 dashes Angostura bitters

³⁄₄ oz Lemon juice

1 pinch Sugar

1 oz Seltzer

Garnish: 1 orange peel and grated nutmeg

Glass: Cocktail

HOW TO MAKE THE TENNESSEE TWO STEP COCKTAIL

Add the Gran Gala, Punt e Mes, whisky and bitters to a mixing glass and fill with ice.

Stir to combine.

Add the remaining ingredients to a second mixing glass and fill with ice.

Strain the contents of both mixing glasses simultaneously into a cocktail glass.

Garnish with an orange peel and grated nutmeg.

CHARLESTON BREAKFAST COFFEE COCKTAIL

Jerry Slater, a bartender and forthcoming owner of The Expat in Athens, Ga., and co-author of “The Southern Foodways Alliance Guide to Cocktails”—has created a Southern take on the Irish Coffee that’s a much more grain-forward, slightly richer version of the drink.

This recipe originally appeared as part of “The Irish Coffee: 3 Delicious Ways to Reconsider the Famed Cocktail.”

INGREDIENTS IN THE CHARLESTON BREAKFAST COFFEE COCKTAIL  

2 oz High Wire New Southern Revival sorghum whiskey

¹⁄₂ oz Demerara simple syrup

8 oz Brewed dark-roast coffee

1 cup Heavy cream

Garnish: Whipped cream

Glass: Irush coffee mug

HOW TO MAKE THE CHARLESTON BREAKFAST COFFEE COCKTAIL

Pour the whiskey and simple syrup into a coffee mug.

Top with the coffee, and stir to combine.

Place the heavy cream in a pint-size Mason jar, and seal tightly with the lid.

Shake the jar until the cream gets thick and pourable but not yet firm.

Pour the soft whipped cream on top to form a layer about 1/2-inch thick.

NEGRONI SORBET COCKTAIL

The classic three-ingredient Negroni is reimagined as a boozy sorbet.

The Negroni Sorbet originally appeared in our DrinkWire channel.

INGREDIENTS IN THE NEGRONI SORBET COCKTAIL  

1 oz Gin

1 oz Campari liqueur

1 oz Sweet vermouth

2 cup Fresh squeezed ruby red grapefruit juice

1 cupSugar

1 cup Water

Garnish: Orange twist

Glass: Cocktail

HOW TO MAKE THE NEGRONI SORBET COCKTAIL

Combine all the ingredients into an ice cream maker and freeze, according to the ice cream maker instructions, until the mixture begins to obtain the consistency of sorbet.

Transfer to a closed container and store sealed in the freezer for at least 2 hours.

Serve in a cocktail glass.

Garnish with an orange twist or peel cut into the shape of a flower.

GIN-GIN MULE COCKTAIL

This gingery cocktail found in “New York Cocktails” (Cider Mill Press, $19.95) by Amanda Schuster was created by Audrey Saunders for NYC’s Pegu Club as a gateway gin drink for vodka lovers. Not only did it succeed, it inspired many variations around the world.

INGREDIENTS IN THE GIN-GIN MULE COCKTAIL  

1 oz Simple syrup

³⁄₄ oz Fresh lime juice

1  Mint sprig

1 ³⁄₄ oz Tanqueray London dry gin

1 oz Ginger beer

Garnish: I mint sprig

Glass: Highball

HOW TO MAKE THE GIN-GIN MULE COCKTAIL

In a mixing tin, muddle the simple syrup, lime juice and 1 mint sprig.

Add the gin, ginger beer and ice, and shake well.

Strain into a highball glass over fresh ice.

Garnish with 1 mint sprig, and serve with a straw.

SUMMER MARTINI COCKTAIL

Beefeater’s special Summer Edition Gin packs a heavy dose of floral flavor.

INGREDIENTS IN THE SUMMER MARTINI COCKTAIL  

90 ml Beefeater Summer Edition Gin

30 ml Dry vermouth

Garnish: 1 Blackberry and raspberry

Glass: Martini

HOW TO MAKE THE SUMMER MARTINI COCKTAIL

Add both ingredients to a mixing glass and fill with ice.

Stir until well chilled and strain into a Martini glass.

Garnish with a blackberry and a raspberry on a toothpick.

MAKE IT COUNT COCKTAIL

Pamela Wiznitzer of Seamstress in New York City thinks that if you have just one drink, you might as well Make It Count. This lovely red-hued cocktail takes the bitterness of Campari and mellows it out with a little honey syrup and sweet blood orange. It gets a little sparkle from soda water and proves perfectly refreshing on hot day or as an after-dinner treat.

INGREDIENTS IN THE MAKE IT COUNT COCKTAIL  

2 oz Campari

1 oz The Perfect Purée of Napa Valley blood orange concentrate

¹⁄₂ oz Honey syrup*

Splash of soda water

Garnish: Orange chip

ADD TO SHOPPING LIST

Glass: Highball

HOW TO MAKE THE MAKE IT COUNT COCKTAIL

Add all the ingredients to a highball glass with ice, and stir gently.

Garnish with an orange chip.

*Honey syrup: Add .5 cup honey and .5 cup water to a small saucepan over medium heat. (You can experiment and decide how much of a honey flavor you want in your syrup. The more honey you use, the thicker the syrup and stronger in flavor it will be.) Stir until blended. Strain into a jar and seal tightly with a lid. Will keep for 1 month in the refrigerator.

SMASH & GRAB COCKTAIL

You don’t need a crowbar to fix this tasty bourbon cocktail.

INGREDIENTS IN THE SMASH & GRAB COCKTAIL  

2 oz Larceny bourbon

2  Orange wheels

2  Mint sprigs

¹⁄₄ oz Simple syrup

Garnish: 1 Lemon wheel

Glass: Old Fashioned

HOW TO MAKE THE SMASH & GRAB COCKTAIL

In a shaker, lightly muddle the orange, mint and simple syrup.

Add the bourbon and fill with ice.

Shake vigorously and double-strain into an Old Fashioned glass filled with fresh ice.

Garnish with a lemon wheel.

Condado cocktail

CONDADO

• 1.5 oz. Bacardi Anejo Cuatro
• 3/4 oz. Punt e Mes
• 1 oz. brûléed pineapple juice*
• 1/2 oz. lime juice
• 1/4 oz. IPA syrup**
• 1 dash peaty Scotch (Laphroaig)

Combine all ingredients except Scotch in a shaker with crushed ice and shake until chilled. Open pour into a large brandy snifter. Top with a little more ice and the peaty Scotch. Garnish with pineapple leaves and a piece of brûléed pineapple.

*For brûléed pineapple juice, slice a pineapple into rings, removing the rind and the core. Set rings on a cooling rack or other heatproof surface and pass a torch over them until they begin to blacken. Let cool slightly, flip rings, and repeat. To extract the juice, muddle the rings and then fine-strain the pulp. For the garnish, leave the rind on one of the rings and sprinkle a bit of sugar on before you brûlée it - this gives it a nice caramelized color.

**For IPA syrup, add 1 cup of IPA beer to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. When it foams up, add 3/4 cup Demerara sugar. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved and the mixture has reduced to a syrupy consistency.

PEANUT BUTTER CUP MARTINI COCKTAIL

A cocktail with peanut rum, chocolate liqueur and vodka. Take that, Reese’s!

INGREDIENTS IN THE PEANUT BUTTER CUP MARTINI COCKTAIL  

1 ¹⁄₂ oz Van Gogh Dutch Chocolate Vodka

1 oz Castries Crème Peanut Rum

³⁄₄ oz Chocolate liqueur

¹⁄₂ oz Cream

Garnish: 1 Peanut butter cup
                  Chocolate syrup

Glass: Martini

HOW TO MAKE THE PEANUT BUTTER CUP MARTINI COCKTAIL

Drizzle chocolate syrup along the inside of a chilled Martini glass and place the glass in the refrigerator.

Add the remaining ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice.

Shake vigorously and strain into the prepared glass.

Garnish with a peanut butter cup.

GIN ON GIN JULEP COCKTAIL

This chilly and refreshing drink calls for both gin and genever.

INGREDIENTS IN THE GIN ON GIN JULEP COCKTAIL  

¹⁄₂ oz Rich simple syrup (two parts sugar, one part water)

15  Large mint leaves

1 oz Bols genever

1 oz Plymouth gin

1 splash Club soda

Garnish: 1 Mint sprig

Glass: Julep

HOW TO MAKE THE GIN ON GIN JULEP COCKTAIL

In a Julep cup, muddle the simple syrup and mint.

Fill with crushed or pellet ice and add the genever and gin.

Top with the club soda and stir until combined.

Garnish with a mint sprig.