Cocktails
I started making cocktails mainly when I bought my house, we'd have parties, people bring a bottle and the challenge is to make a tasty drink with the ingredients you have. Think of it like ready steady cook but in a drinks world! Some of the creations I made were amazing but like all success stories there were many failures! Fortunately it was more the former than latter!
Unfortunately I never wrote my ingredients or quantities down so I could never remember what I had or hadn’t put in and if I could I could never remember the quantities, this made recreating them an impossible task! So my top tip to you is if you're creating a new drink from scratch write down what you put in, how much of it and what you did with it, shake, stir , muddle etc. This way when you want to make it again it's easy to recreate, and if it needs tweaking it's easy to adjust volume of certain ingredients.
So , when you think of the word “Cocktail” what springs to mind? A lot of people think sticking a couple of ingredients into a fancy glass and stirring constitutes a cocktail, however according to our good friend Wikipedia the following statement should me used....
“When used to refer to any generic alcoholic mixed drink, cocktail may mean any beverage that contains three or more ingredients if at least two of them contain alcohol. Drinks are often referred to Cocktails in bars when they may only contain a few ingredients
When a mixed drink contains only a distilled spirit and a mixer, such as soda or fruit juice, it is a highball; many of the International Bartenders Association Official Cocktails are highballs. When a cocktail contains only a distilled spirit and a liqueur, it is a duo and when it adds a mixer, it is a trio. Additional ingredients may be sugar, honey, milk, cream, and various herbs.”
So next time some posh presumptuous bar tries to charge you £8 for a rum and Coke with lime claiming it’s a cocktail don't be fooled. The cocktails below are what I've made most recently, more will be added as people request them or I create them. If you have any ideas I like suggestions drop me a note and ill see what my creative mind can produce!
Up until recently I liked to work using Smirnoff or Absolute vodka, both are clean tasting spirits that blend well with other flavours without taking over, however a recent trip to a wine and Spirits specialist (Wine Rack in Leeds if you’re near) opened my eyes, he let me sample a few brands and give me a few ideas of new ones to try, I know I will be using Stoli Salted caramel in one of my upcoming recipes, It was so smooth without any of that alcohol burn you get with a normal vodka. I'm yet to try Belvedere or Grey Goose; however the Wine rack shop sells miniatures so I may get one of each to give them a try!
I’ve recently been building up my rum collection, Sunday brunch is a stable part of my Sunday mornings, they did a feature on Spiced rum and how its in fashion right this moment so I've been experimenting with this, Anytime I see a bottle on a deal I stock up. My favourite so far is O’Hara’s rum made in Sheffield, if you’re ever there I Suggest asking for an Espresso Martini made using this instead of Vodka, I’m enjoying being a rum experimenter, and I may move over to vodkas later on and skip past Gin as I’ve never been able to get into this!
Some of the spirits ive used have been a bit hard to find, The drinkshop on the banner below stock a wide range of Spirits to use
Unfortunately I never wrote my ingredients or quantities down so I could never remember what I had or hadn’t put in and if I could I could never remember the quantities, this made recreating them an impossible task! So my top tip to you is if you're creating a new drink from scratch write down what you put in, how much of it and what you did with it, shake, stir , muddle etc. This way when you want to make it again it's easy to recreate, and if it needs tweaking it's easy to adjust volume of certain ingredients.
So , when you think of the word “Cocktail” what springs to mind? A lot of people think sticking a couple of ingredients into a fancy glass and stirring constitutes a cocktail, however according to our good friend Wikipedia the following statement should me used....
“When used to refer to any generic alcoholic mixed drink, cocktail may mean any beverage that contains three or more ingredients if at least two of them contain alcohol. Drinks are often referred to Cocktails in bars when they may only contain a few ingredients
When a mixed drink contains only a distilled spirit and a mixer, such as soda or fruit juice, it is a highball; many of the International Bartenders Association Official Cocktails are highballs. When a cocktail contains only a distilled spirit and a liqueur, it is a duo and when it adds a mixer, it is a trio. Additional ingredients may be sugar, honey, milk, cream, and various herbs.”
So next time some posh presumptuous bar tries to charge you £8 for a rum and Coke with lime claiming it’s a cocktail don't be fooled. The cocktails below are what I've made most recently, more will be added as people request them or I create them. If you have any ideas I like suggestions drop me a note and ill see what my creative mind can produce!
Up until recently I liked to work using Smirnoff or Absolute vodka, both are clean tasting spirits that blend well with other flavours without taking over, however a recent trip to a wine and Spirits specialist (Wine Rack in Leeds if you’re near) opened my eyes, he let me sample a few brands and give me a few ideas of new ones to try, I know I will be using Stoli Salted caramel in one of my upcoming recipes, It was so smooth without any of that alcohol burn you get with a normal vodka. I'm yet to try Belvedere or Grey Goose; however the Wine rack shop sells miniatures so I may get one of each to give them a try!
I’ve recently been building up my rum collection, Sunday brunch is a stable part of my Sunday mornings, they did a feature on Spiced rum and how its in fashion right this moment so I've been experimenting with this, Anytime I see a bottle on a deal I stock up. My favourite so far is O’Hara’s rum made in Sheffield, if you’re ever there I Suggest asking for an Espresso Martini made using this instead of Vodka, I’m enjoying being a rum experimenter, and I may move over to vodkas later on and skip past Gin as I’ve never been able to get into this!
Some of the spirits ive used have been a bit hard to find, The drinkshop on the banner below stock a wide range of Spirits to use
I've tried to group the cocktails into categories but some may feature in two categories depending what's in them.
Creamy Cocktails
Using cream or milk, these cocktails are very thick and silky but also quite sickly, addictive tastes but you may only manage one!
Dessert cocktails
Want a dessert after your meal but too full to fit one in? Try these great Cocktails as a sweet dessert alternative.
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Fruity Cocktails
Combining fruit juices with syrups and natural fruit purees these cocktails are very refreshing
The Classics
The Classic Cockails. Mojitos, woo woos, that sort of thing
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Mocktails
Love the flavours of Cocktails but don't drink or cant drink alcohol? Try one of these Mocktails
Bitter/ Citrus Cocktails
Cocktails with a bitter taste, often using citrus fruits.
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Cocktails by Kimber's Kitchen
A Collection of Cocktails made with my Own Hands to my own recipes, click image for more details.