The Classic 25 Drinks Every Bartender Should Know

I don’t know how many times I’ve had a bartender ask me, “What’s a Negroni?”

BarSmarts Online

Any bartender who really wants to understand the basics of the craft should pay the $45 and take the four online training modules at www.BarSmarts.com.

Here are the 25 classic drinks that BarSmarts thinks every bartender should know:

  1. Aviation Cocktail. Gin, Maraschino, lemon juice.
  2. Bellini. White peach puree, champagne.
  3. Blood and Sand. Scotch, cherry liquor, sweet vermouth, orange juice.
  4. Bloody Mary. Tomato juice, vodka, spices.
  5. Caipirinha. Cachaça, lime, sugar.
  6. Collins (Tom, John or Vodka). Gin, bourbon or vodka, simple syrup, lemon juice.
  7. Cosmopolitan. Citrus vodka, orange liquor, lime juice, cranberry juice.
  8. Daiquiri. Rum, simple syrup, lime juice.
  9. Gimlet. Gin, Rose’s lime juice.
  10. Gin Fizz. Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup, club soda.
  11. Irish Coffee. Irish whiskey, brown sugar syrup, coffer, whipped cream.
  12. Mai Tai. Rum, lime juice, orange curaçao, orgeat syrup.
  13. Manhattan. Bourbon or rye, sweet vermouth, bitters.
  14. Margarita. Tequila, orange liquor, lime juice, simple syrup.
  15. Dry Martini. Gin, dry vermouth, orange bitters.
  16. Mint Julep. Bourbon, sugar, mint.
  17. Mojito. Rum, lime juice, simple syrup, mint, club soda.
  18. Negroni. Gin, Campari, sweet vermouth.
  19. Old Fashioned. Bourbon or rye, sugar.
  20. Pisco Sour. Pisco, lime juice, simple syrup, bitters, egg white.
  21. Rob Roy. Scotch, sweet vermouth, bitters.
  22. Sazerac. Rye, Peychaud’s bitters, absinthe, simple syrup.
  23. Sidecar. Cognac, orange liquor, lemon juice.
  24. Stinger. Cognac, white crème de Menthe.
  25. Whiskey Sour. Bourbon or rye, simple syrup, lemon juice.

Full recipes are online, plus there’s a video that shows Dale DeGroff, David Wonderlich and others making each of the drinks.

September 4, 2009 by John Martin under Spirits
4 Comments

Mixologist or Bartender?

These polls are unscientific and don’t mean a thing.

mixologist.JPG

Here’s the poll from Imbibe Magazine: Which term do you prefer?

Personally, one who stands behind a bar and makes drinks is a bartender. One who finds or creates recipes and uses those recipes to help make drinks is a mixologist. That’s two different things altogether.

August 25, 2009 by John Martin under Spirits
2 Comments

Robert Parker vs Gary Vaynerchuk

garyvee.pngMaybe Web 2.0 is nothing but hype. Maybe it’s really making changes in the wine world.

Here’s an interesting blog post over at domaine547: “Gary Vaynerchuk as Market Maker.”

You can follow Gary on Twitter at twitter.com/garyvee.

March 12, 2009 by John Martin under Wine
No Comments

I’ll have fries with that

mcnuggetini.jpgHmm. I’m not sure if this is real or a joke.

The McNuggitini.

February 18, 2009 by John Martin under Food, Spirits
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