Can you identify the ingredients in a martini, cosmopolitan, Manhattan, Mai Tai, Long Island Iced Tea, Harvey Wallbager and more? See how well you know your cocktails.
Cocktail Ingredients Quiz
Crazy for Cosmopolitans? You'll need vodka, Cointreau or triple sec, lime juice, and one other ingredient to shake 'em up at home.
Grenadine
Orange juice
Cranberry juice
Pink grapefruit juice
Some folks get fancy with the recipe, but a traditionally-made Mai Tai gets its signature flavor from lime juice, dark rum, grenadine (or simple syrup), curacao and what other key ingredient?
Almond syrup
Mango juice
Coconut milk
Orange juice
Shaking up vodka, cream, and this variety of liqueur results in a White Russian.
Coffee
White chocolate
Vanilla
Peppermint
The rim of a Sidecar glass is coated in what tasty substance?
Sugar
Salt
Cocoa
Honey
The non-alcoholic classic Shirley Temple contains ginger ale (or lemon-lime soda), orange juice and a sweet splash of what?
Fruit punch
Cranberry juice
Grenadine
Pineapple juice
Vodka or gin would need just this ingredient to be shaken or stirred into a gimlet.
Roses Lime Juice Cordial
Olive juice
Fresh lime juice
Pickle juice
Rye (or bourbon), vermouth, bitters and a cherry are the components of which classic cocktail?
Negroni
Old Fashioned
Manhattan
Rob Roy
Mix up rum, lime and Coca-Cola to make this drink.
Cuba Libre
El Presidente
Bronx
Corpse Reviver
Mint, sugar, lime, soda water and this liquor come together to be muddled into a mojito.
Cachaca
Tequila
Rum
Pisco
Standard ingredients in a Negroni include gin, vermouth and what other liquid?
Lemon juice
Egg whites
Angostura bitters
Campari
It's not just a punchline -- the Harvey Wallbanger is a fern bar staple featuring vodka, orange juice, and this odd liqueur.
Goldschlager
Rumplemintz
Galliano
Peach Schnaaps
When this is popped into a Martini in lieu of an olive, it becomes a Gibson.
Jalapeno pepper
Lime wedge
Gherkin
Cocktail onion
James Bond may be more commonly associated with the Martini, but writer Ian Fleming also had him slugging down Vespers, which are concocted from Lillet Blanc and which two liquors?
Brandy & Scotch
Gin & Vodka
Vodka & Bourbon
Bourbon & Brandy
Mix orange juice and this spirit for a hard-hitting Screwdriver.
Rum
Vodka
Champagne
Whiskey
Sure, you could ask for a vodka & cranberry with a lime wedge, but it's much more festive to order it this way:
Greyhound
Salty Dog
Cape Cod
Madras
If you've got bourbon, mint, and a splash of soda, you're on the right track to make the Derby Day classic, a Mint Julep. What's still missing?
Lime
Sugar
Bitters
Nothing
The Bloody Mary is a brunch standard, but this addition transforms it into a hearty Bloody Bull.
Beef broth
Red Bull
A whole hot pepper
Pepper vodka
Creme de menthe and cream are terribly tasty together, but if you want a Grasshopper, hop to the store for a bottle of:
Vanilla vodka
Creme de Cacao
Green food coloring
Mint extract
A Greyhound gets its distinctive flavor from vodka and this mixer:
Sweetened lime juice
Pineapple juice
Cranberry and orange juice
Grapefruit juice
We all know that a Long Island Iced Tea has no tea in the mix, but what liquor isn't part of the standard recipe?
Alabama-born LeNell Smothers defines herself first and foremost as a bartender, but she's been called many things -- most recently, the proprietress of LeNell's liquor store. She's owned her own whiskey label (Red Hook Rye) and has been recognized by her home state as an honorary colonel. Other interests include gin, sin and men.
New Yorkers are no strangers to packing for a move. The search for a place to live seems to come around far too often. If you survive the apartment hunt without losing your mind, you will lose it in the search for boxes and a moving truck. Growing weary with the ever-present New York conversation about rent, landlords and brokers, my man and I decided on a house in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
Moving time is when real friends get a chance to prove their devotion. To entice a few to help pack up my glassware collection, I filled an antique leopard-print shaker with some California spirits. I figured if I was moving to the Mexican side of Cali, my packing friends could be rewarded with a new cocktail creation using spirits from there.
After the jump, a new pomegranate aperitif and LeNell's Pom Packer.
"Noilly Prat is a necessary component of a dry martini. Without it you can make a Sidecar, a Gimlet, a White Lady, or a gin and bitters, but you cannot make a dry martini." -- W. Somerset Maugham (1958)
Are you A. a cocktail purist or B. a lucky stiff with a climate-controlled storage space? It's time to pair up and start stashing, 'cause the Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth you've been mixing into your Martinis since time immemorial is about to go the way of the Concorde. The Wall Street Journal reports that the makers of the august aperitif plan to expand the distribution of their "original formula," the European standard, to the exclusion of the current US version. Problem is, dry Martinis are a uniquely American construct, and the Euro version is, well, not exactly an ideal swap-in. It's regarded as a stand-alone beverage, rather than a cocktail ingredient, and from all reports, shies far from dry and subtle in several recpects.
"How sugary is it? If you took an old bottle of the dry vermouth and mixed it half-and-half with the Sauternes-sweet aperitif wine Lillet, you'd have a pretty good approximation of what to expect.
With the European Noilly Prat you won't get the crisp and untinged visual clarity now expected of a Martini unless you dial the vermouth back to about an eighth or a tenth of the mix." -- Eric Felten, Wall Street Journal
Yeeks! I've all but entirely shifted my loyalty toward Vya Vermouth over the past few years, but this news has me a tad shaken up. Anyone have a bit of cellar space to spare? I'll bring the olives and the D.H. Krahn.
Thanks to our pal Chess Ninja for this timely tip.
I do most of my cocktail inventing around the holidays. The reason for this is twofold. One, I always visit my parents and they possess a liquor cabinet that shames some bars, not only in actual number of bottles, but also in the array of top-shelf and/or rare liquors. Two, when does one find oneself in need of a drink more than the holidays?
Whether it's the merriment of celebration, the release of stress, or simply the desire to take a breather from all the socializing by indulging in a brief respite behind the bar, December is the time for mixing. And also for giving, so allow me to give you my two newly-invented cocktails for 2008: the Ginger-Pear Cocktail and the Nihilist.
It's only July 3rd and my foodie forefathers have already dished out plenty of Independence Day eats in such posts as American Flag Cakes and Delicious Foods for July 4th. But let's be honest: There is no food or cake that can rival the great American tradition of getting rip-roaring drunk. Even Uncle Sam's cheeks wear a warm flush!
But tradition aside, I do not condone drinking to excess, so I have devised a list of patriotic cocktails that are too lovely to chug. In the words of the great George Washington as he crossed the Delaware: Take it slow, kids, take it slow.
Starfruit and Stripes Daiquiri - The fine folks at MaisonBisson came up with this capital idea: Take a traditional strawberry daiquiri, top it with whipped cream and blueberries, then garnish with a slice of starfruit. Ta da! Liquid flag!
Red, White and Blue Sangria - Punctuate some white sangria with blueberries and raspberries for that good ol' U.S. of A. color scheme.
Boston Pops Martini - This Massachusetts-made martini celebrates the famed Boston Pops' national independence day broadcast. The true fireworks begin with the rim that's dipped in - what else? - Pop Rocks!
Red, White and Blue Shot - Although there are a number of variations on this popular Fourth of July shooter, the key is a careful pour to ensure those colors don't run.
Patriotic Margarita - The arbiters of blue vodka put their hued booze to good use with this layered margarita: HPNOTIQ 'rita, topped with strawberry 'rita, dressed up with a coconut rim.
Red, White and Blue beers - According to the results of this poll, beer is the bev of choice for cookouts. So if you want to keep with the patriotic theme, stock up on PBR (in the unmistakable red, white, and blue can) or for something a bit classier, invest in an assortment of Chimay Red, Chimay White, and Chimay Blue.
If you are declaring an independence from alcohol, whip up one of these constitutions:
Patriotic Tea Punch - Try out this tart punch that boasts an iced tea base, pomegranate juice, and gobs of fresh fruit.
Bomb Pop Mocktail - This red, white, and blue pousse-cafe layers cranberry juice, blue Gatorade, and diet 7-up to mimic everyone's favorite patriotic popsicle.
My fashion-forward roommate reads Nylon Magazine, and I was flipping through it the other day when I came across the drink of the month: the Grapes of Wrath martini. The Grapes of Wrath is one of my favorite novels, but to see it as a martini? I'm not so sure how I feel.
It would be one thing if the magazine had designed a martini around a book like The Great Gatsby (I'd actually bet there are many), but The Grapes of Wrath? I mean, it takes place during the Great Depression -- none of the characters go near anything like a martini, especially not one featuring Belvedere Vokda, grapes, apple juice, elderflower cordial, and a dashes of lemon juice and sauvignon blanc. Is it blasphemous, or am I reading too far into a name?
But the whole thing got me wondering about other novels, and whether they have drinks named after them. I found a Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With the Wind (another personal favorite), which consists of peach liqueur, cranberry juice and a lime wedge. That's appropriate enough -- though I'd have loved to see something perhaps with a touch of sour mix! I found a Monte Cristo with coffee and orange liqueurs, hot coffee and whipped cream, though the drink could be named after one of the various cities by that name and not the book The Count of Monte Cristo. Anyone know of any others? Extra points for books you read in high school English and for drinks that are wildly inappropriate for their respective novels.
I've never been one to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, which is this Monday. I'm not Irish, I'm not one to party a lot anyway, and if I wear green on that day than it's just an accident. But it's always fun to see what drinks we can turn green.
Here's a recipe for an Emerald Isle, which is a martini made with gin, bitters, and creme de menthe (that's where the green comes in). It's an easy drink to whip up for yourself and your friends this weekend (or Monday, if you plan to take the day off because you're "sick").
Is that a cucumber in your market totebag or are you just happy to see me?
I would say that more so than any of the other phallic foods, the straighter, thicker cucumber is probably the most, in my humble opinion of course, accurate. However, shape and size aren't the only things that matter when it comes to turning on a woman with a cucumber. Aside from its phallic shape, the scent of cucumbers is believed to stimulate women by increasing blood flow to the vagina.
That must be why so many of us love those cucumber melon scented bath products!
We all know that while Thanksgiving can be one of the nicest days of the year, it can also be a trying one. Many of us spend the day with relatives we don't usually mingle with, or at least the number of family members we have to deal with on Turkey Day increases dramatically. Uncle Freddie and his dirty jokes, your nephew who can't stop talking about how much money he makes, the mother-in-law with the annoying laugh. Some people deal with this by smiling a lot, some deal with it by avoiding some people, and some eat a lot. What do others do?
Booze!
OK, it's probably not a great idea to get sloshed while you're trying to cook and carve a turkey, but holidays were made for cocktails too. Maybe you can have this after all of the big work is done, or later after dinner is done and it's coffee and cocktail and talking-time.
On the weekends at the beach, you're wasting away in Margaritaville. During the week, you're a swanky Rat Packer at the uptown lounge. Honey, it sounds like you're going through a little identity crisis.
Alyson's Margaritatini is just the thing for the swanky, sophisticated beach bums. It's a combination of margarita ingredients, shaken and served (halfway) "up" in stemless glasses like a martini. It's got "none of the melt, all the ole!" Sound good? Not even close. The kicker is a little secret ingredient that you can find out only by clicking through to get the recipe.
It's Halloween night and the kids have gone out, made out like candy-bandits, come back, and are now safely in bed. Now it's your turn, so what better way to turn in for the evening than a sweet, candy-inspired cocktail, or what we like to call "booze candy?" Normally, I stay away from such sugary, syrupy drinks, but on Halloween, I make an exception for this, the Almond Joy Martini, of which I have written before but hadn't yet tried. Instead of the suggested garnish of shredded coconut, though, we did a swirl of chocolate syrup.
I'll just say that it's pretty damn good. If you feel like a nut, that is.
Here is yet another concoction to add to our ever-growing list of things that bacon is not normally found in, yet contain bacon anyway: bacon martinis. Unlike some of our previous finds, however, a bacon martini doesn't even really sound appetizing. It is made with the following method: "Lightly mist martini glass with vermouth, and rim the edge with bacon grease. In a cocktail shaker, mix 3oz vodka, one dash Tabasco, and one dash olive juice. Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. Skim excess bacon grease from surface of cocktail. Garnish with one slice of bacon." It's hard to say whether the recipe was intended to be a joke because there are definitely bacon lovers out there who would give this a try at least once. Perhaps the question we should be asking is what to serve such a cocktail with. It might be too salty if served with nuts or other classic bar food, and there is no way that it would pair well with a dessert. It might add a bit of bacon flavor to an otherwise plain steak, but the only other viable option is with an egg dish at breakfast. After all, if you're willing to toss back some bacon martinis in the first place, you probably won't have a problem doing it in the morning.
This is the perfect drink for a Halloween party (or if you just feel like scaring some friends a little bit). It is called a Bloody Eyeball Martini and starts out as a straight martini, with gin and vermouth. The "bloody eyeball" accent is made by carving most of the red peel from a radish, leaving a few strips of color to look like veins. Once it is peeled, a small hole should be carved at the top and stuffed with a pimento olive, which represents the iris. After your eyeballs are ready, just store them in the freezer until you're ready to use them. If you don't mind watering down your drink a bit, you can actually freeze the eyeballs in an ice cube tray filled with water, which would be a great way to prep them for use in punch, where you don't necessarily want radishes and olives floating around on their own.
Flavor-infused vodkas are all the rage these days, particularly as the base to fancy cocktails. While lemon and other citrus fruits have been around for a while, infusers are becoming increasingly more exotic like pomegranate and lychee.
Lichido Liqueur isn't exactly an infused vodka. It is actually a liqueur. In fact, the website where it is sold ($22.99) says that it is a martini in a bottle made of vodka, Cognac and infused with not only lychee, but guava and white peaches. As long as it isn't too sticky sweet, it sounds delish!
Remember that ridiculous Jamba Juice-esque Blueberry Basil Martini from last week? Well, this is it much lighter, leaner, classier cousin, the Apple Green Tea Martini, mixed with Bombay Sapphire Gin. The green tea made it light and the apple flavor wasn't overly sweet like many of the sour apple martinis out there (whic of course, we know, you would never drink anymore,right?)
I drank it an event, and so I didnt get the recipe from the official Bombay Sapphire mixologist, but have done some research and found a few recipes sources for either a Green Tea Martini, an Apple Martini, or both. Of course, most of the martinis are made with vodka, but we know that a proper martini is made with gin.
"Noilly Prat is a necessary component of a dry martini. Without it you can make a Sidecar, a Gimlet, a White Lady, or a gin and bitters, but you cannot make a dry martini." -- W. Somerset Maugham (1958)
My fashion-forward roommate reads 
I've never been one to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, which is this Monday. I'm not Irish, I'm not one to party a lot anyway, and if I wear green on that day than it's just an accident. But it's always fun to see what drinks we can turn green.
We all know that while Thanksgiving can be one of the nicest days of the year, it can also be a trying one. Many of us spend the day with relatives we don't usually mingle with, or at least the number of family members we have to deal with on Turkey Day increases dramatically. Uncle Freddie and his dirty jokes, your nephew who can't stop talking about how much money he makes, the mother-in-law with the annoying laugh. Some people deal with this by smiling a lot, some deal with it by avoiding some people, and some eat a lot. What do others do?
Here is yet another concoction to add to our 
This is the perfect drink for a Halloween party (or if you just feel like scaring some friends a little bit). It is called a 
Say that five times fast!
Remember that ridiculous 
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