The classics

23 recipes

• Espresso MartiniA cold, creamy and gently bitter coffee drink with a lush foam and a touch of sweetness.

  Known and loved everywhere, and a cocktail with a second job: keeping the party going.

• DaiquiriRum, lime and syrup in perfect balance: cold, clear and astonishingly simple.

  Even when the cabinet is far from full, you can almost always make a Daiquiri.

• Old FashionedA stylish, spirit-forward classic in which bourbon, sugar and bitters melt into something close to perfect.

  If you like whiskey, you will like an Old Fashioned.

• NegroniBitter, sweet and herbal in glorious balance: gin, Campari and sweet vermouth stirred cold and clear.

  One of the cocktails that divides a room. Bitter, sweet and strong, in equal parts.

• White RussianA creamy classic in which vodka and coffee liqueur meet under a gentle layer of cream.

  Creamy, round and exactly decadent enough.

• MojitoA Cuban classic with fresh mint, lime and white rum: crisp, sweet and refreshing on a hot day.

  There are two kinds of Mojito: the one served at a beach bar with a view of the sea, and the one you make at home. This recipe gets the second close to the first.

• Whiskey SourTart, silky and perfectly balanced: bourbon, lemon and a lid of creamy foam.

  Proof that whiskey does not always have to be serious.

• MargaritaA classic Margarita of tequila, orange liqueur and freshly squeezed lime: crisp, tart and perfectly balanced.

  When life hands you limes, tequila and Cointreau, there is no reason to make lemonade.

• Dry MartiniIce-cold, clear and cuttingly elegant: gin and dry vermouth in perfect balance, finished with lemon oil.

  The most misunderstood cocktail in the world.

• Piña ColadaA creamy, tropical rum drink of pineapple and coconut, blended until silky smooth.

  It has suffered more bad all-inclusive versions than it deserves. Made properly, it earns its place.

• CosmopolitanA fresh, tart and beautifully pink classic of citrus vodka, Cointreau, cranberry and lime.

  Famous thanks to Sex and the City, and still worth making on its own merits.

• French 75Crisp citrus, gentle sweetness and a stream of Champagne bubbles lift gin's herbal perfume into something truly festive.

  There is champagne, and then there is champagne with gin.

• BrambleA fresh gin sour with tart lemon and sweetness, crowned with dark blackberry liqueur that trickles beautifully through crushed ice.

  One of the younger classics, and it has long since earned its place.

• PalomaA fresh, salty-tart tequila cocktail with grapefruit soda: Mexico's answer to the perfect summer drink.

  The Margarita’s more relaxed cousin.

• Dark 'N' StormyFiery ginger and dark rum meet in a glass where the rum hangs on top like a small thundercloud.

  It is hard to make rum, ginger beer and lime complicated, and luckily there is no need.

• Amaretto SourA creamy, tart sour where amaretto’s almond sweetness meets bourbon’s bite beneath a silky egg-white foam.

  If you have only tasted the very sweet versions, you owe yourself a proper one.

• BoulevardierBourbon, Campari and sweet vermouth in fine company — a warm, bittersweet older brother to the Negroni.

  Picture a Negroni that has swapped its gin for bourbon.

• ManhattanSpicy rye whiskey meets sweet vermouth and a hint of Angostura in this taut, silky classic.

  If the Old Fashioned is whiskey in work clothes, the Manhattan is whiskey in a suit.

• SidecarThe classic Sidecar of cognac, orange liqueur and fresh lemon, finely balanced between sweet and sour.

  A reminder of how far three good ingredients can take you.

• Gin FizzA fresh, fizzy classic of gin, lemon and syrup, topped with soda water for a light, tart lift.

  Fresh and light, with a foam on top that makes it look more difficult than it is.

• Last WordFour equal parts of gin, green Chartreuse, maraschino and lime meet in a sharp, herbal cocktail with a tart finish.

  A modern classic, and an easy equal-parts recipe.

• SazeracNew Orleans' oldest cocktail: rye whiskey, sugar and Peychaud's bitters in a glass scented with absinthe.

  If New Orleans could be bottled, it would taste something like this.

• Corpse Reviver #2A tart, floral classic with a hint of anise that wakes the senses as surely as a cup of strong coffee.

  The name promises more than any doctor would be comfortable with.