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A cocktail doesn’t have to be a complicated thing. In fact, many of the best involve just a few ingredients. These, my friends, are the cocktails you should know how to make, as they’re simple to pull off and taste superb.
Maximalist cocktails with as many ingredients as there are stars in the sky are great, but better left to the pros. We like to make the ones that don’t require a whole lot of special equipment (outside of a good cocktail shaker) or that take too much of your precious time. These are cocktails that tend to let your favorite spirit shine, whether it’s good rye whiskey or a favorite gin.
Here are 22 easy cocktail recipes you can make at home.
Old Fashioned
Ingredients
- 2 ounces bourbon or rye whiskey
- 3-4 dashes Angostura bitters
- 1 sugar cube
- A few drops of water
- Orange peel
Method
- In your Old Fashioned whiskey glass, add a sugar cube, bitters, and a few drops of water, and muddle until the sugar is dissolved.
- Add bourbon, then ice, and stir until chilled.
- Express the orange peel over the top and drop it into the glass.
Read more: Best classic whiskey cocktails
Manhattan
Ingredients
- 2 ounces of your best rye whiskey
- 3/4 ounce sweet vermouth
- 1-2 dashes Angostura bitters
- Cherry (preferably Luxardo), for garnish
Method
- Combine rye, vermouth, and bitters in a mixing glass with ice, and stir until well-chilled.
- Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnish with a cherry.
Read more: How to make a Manhattan
Paloma
Ingredients
- 2 ounces of your best tequila
- 6 ounces grapefruit soda
- Lime wedge or grapefruit wedge
Method
- Combine tequila and grapefruit soda in a Collins glass with ice.
- Garnish with a lime or grapefruit wedge.
Read more: Best classic tequila cocktail recipes
Margarita
Ingredients
- 2 ounces tequila
- 1 ounce Cointreau
- 1 ounce fresh lime juice
- Lime wedge
- Salt rim (optional)
Method
- If using a salt rim, rub a lime wedge around the rim of a double Old Fashioned glass, then roll the outside in sea salt.
- Combine tequila, Cointreau, and lime juice in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into the glass over fresh ice.
- Garnish with a lime wedge.
Read more: Best tequilas for Margaritas
Tom Collins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces gin
- 3 ounces club soda
- 1 ounce lemon juice
- 1 ounce simple syrup*
- Lemon wheel
- Cherry
Method
- Combine gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup in a Collins glass with ice.
- Top with club soda, and stir to mix.
- Garnish with a lemon wheel and a cherry.
*For simple syrup, combine equal parts sugar and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Chill and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a month.
Read more: Best cocktail gin recipes
Gin and Tonic
Ingredients
- 2 ounces of gin
- 2-6 ounces tonic water, according to taste
- Lime wedge
Method
- Combine gin and tonic in a Collins glass filled with ice.
- Garnish with a lime wedge.
Read more: Best gin for Gin and Tonics
White Russian
Ingredients
- 2 ounces vodka
- 1 ounce coffee liqueur
- 1/2 ounce heavy cream
Method
- Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into to a double Old Fashioned glass filled with ice.
Read more: Best classic vodka cocktail recipes
Salty Dog
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces vodka
- 3 1/2 ounces grapefruit juice
- Grapefruit slice
- Sea salt
Method
- Add vodka and grapefruit juice to a shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Wet the rim of a cocktail glass with grapefruit slice, and roll the outside of the rim in sea salt.
- Add ice to glass and pour.
- Garnish with grapefruit wedge.
Read more: Best citrus cocktails
Daiquiri
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces white rum
- 1 ounce lime juice
- 1/2 ounce simple syrup*
- Lime wedge
Method
- Combine rum, lime juice, and simple syrup in a shaker with ice.
- Shake well, and strain into a cocktail glass.
- Garnish with a lime wedge.
*For simple syrup, combine equal parts sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Chill and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a month.
Read more: Best rum cocktail recipes
Dark ‘n Stormy
Ingredients
- 2 ounces dark rum
- 4 ounces ginger beer for Moscow mules
- 1/2 ounce lime juice
- Lime wedge
Method
- In a Collins glass filled with ice, combine rum, ginger beer, and lime juice.
- Garnish with a lime wedge.
Negroni
Ingredients
- 1 ounce gin
- 1 ounce Campari
- 1 ounce Sweet Vermouth
- Orange peel and a pinch of salt, for garnish
Method
- Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice, and stir until well-chilled.
- Strain into a double Old Fashioned glass over fresh ice.
- Express orange peel over the drink and drop in the glass with a pinch of salt.
Read more: Best Negroni cocktail recipe
Dry Martini
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 ounces London Dry Gin
- 3/4 ounces Dry Vermouth
- 1 dash orange bitters
- Lemon peel and/or olive, for garnish
Method
- Combine gin, vermouth, and bitters in a mixing glass with ice, and stir until ice cold.
- Strain into a cocktail glass.
- Express lemon oil over the drink and drop the peel into the glass along with olive, if desired.
Read more: Best vodka for Martinis
French 75
Ingredients
- 1 ounce gin
- 1/2 ounce lemon juice
- 1/2 ounce simple syrup*
- 4 ounces Champagne
- Long lemon twist, for garnish
Method
- Combine gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into a champagne flute, and top with champagne.
- Carve a long, thin strip of lemon peel with a channel knife and coil into a glass.
*For simple syrup, combine equal parts sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Chill and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a month to use in your French 75.
Read more: The best Champagnes
Mojito
Ingredients
- 2 ounces white rum
- 3/4 ounce lime juice
- 1/2 ounce simple syrup*
- 4 ounces soda water
- 6 leaves plus 1 sprig of fresh mint
Method
- Combine mint and simple syrup in the bottom of a cocktail shaker, and muddle gently.
- Add rum, lime juice, and ice, and shake briefly.
- Strain into a Collins glass with ice, and top with soda water.
- Garnish with mint sprig.
*For simple syrup, combine equal parts sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Chill and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a month.
Read more: Best rums for Mojitos
Cosmopolitan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces citron vodka
- 1/2 ounce Cointreau or other orange liqueur
- 1/2 ounce lime juice
- 1/2 ounce cranberry juice
- Lime wheel, for garnish
Method
- Combine vodka, orange liqueur, and juices in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
- Garnish with a lime wheel.
Read more: How to make a Cosmopolitan
Whiskey Sour
Ingredients
- 2 ounces whiskey
- 3/4 ounce lemon juice
- 3/4 ounce simple syrup*
- 1 egg white (optional)
- Cherry, for garnish
Method
- Combine whiskey, lemon, simple syrup, and egg white (if using) in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into a double Old Fashioned glass over fresh ice.
- Garnish with a cherry.
*For simple syrup, combine equal parts sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Chill and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a month.
Read more: Best whiskies for a whiskey sour
Americano
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces Campari
- 1 1/12 ounces sweet vermouth
- 3 ounces soda water
- Orange peel, for garnish
Method
- Combine Campari, vermouth, and soda water in a Collins glass with ice.
- Garnish with orange peel.
Read more: Best sparkling water brands
Last Word
Ingredients
- 3/4 ounce gin
- 3/4 ounce green chartreuse
- 3/4 ounce maraschino liqueur
- 3/4 ounce lime juice
Method
- Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Read more: How to make Last Word cocktail
Sidecar
Ingredients
- 2 ounces brandy or cognac
- 1 ounce Cointreau
- 3/4 ounce lemon juice
- Sugar, for rim
Method
- Wet rim of a chilled cocktail glass with a lemon wedge and roll in sugar.
- Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake vigorously.
- Strain into sugared glass.
Read more: Best brandies for Sidecars
Champagne Cocktail
Ingredients
- 6 ounces Brut champagne
- 1 sugar cube
- 4 dashes Angostura bitters
- Long, thin lemon twist
Method
- Place sugar cube in the bottom of a champagne flute and soak with bitters.
- Top with champagne.
- Carve a long, thin strip of lemon peel with a channel knife and coil into a glass.
Read more: Best Champagnes under $100
Caipirinha
Ingredients
- 2 ounces cachaça
- 2 teaspoons of sugar (cane sugar is best)
- Juice of 1 lime
- Lime wheel, for garnish
Method
- Cut the lime into wedges, and remove the pith (white, fibrous middle portion of the lime).
- Place the lime wedges and sugar into an Old Fashioned glass and muddle well.
- Add the cachaça and stir.
- Fill the glass with ice and place the lime wedge on the rim.
Read more: How to make a Caipirinha
Ranch Water
Ingredients
- 2 parts tequila
- 1 part Citrónage orange liqueur
- 1 part lime juice
- Topo Chico
Method
- Combine ingredients in a glass.
- Top with Topo Chico.
- Hold on to the extra mineral water and serve what’s left in the bottle with the cocktail.
Read more: How to make a Ranch Water
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