While your favorite cocktail bar is finally reopening, its menu may not look the same. After a year in lockdown your go-to martini recipe just isn’t cutting it anymore. The cocktail world is expanding, and people are looking for drinks they couldn’t make at home.
Here are 5 classic cocktails with a twist:
Smoked Old Fashioned
This elevated take on a classic drink is sure to impress your friends.
What you’ll need:
- 2 fl oz straight rye or bourbon whiskey
- 1 sugar cube
- 2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
- Twist of orange peel
- Cherry
Place the sugar cube and orange peel in a small bowl. Using plastic wrap, cover the bowl and insert the hose from the smoke diffuser. Let sit for one minute. In a whisky glass, place the sugar cube. Adding bitters and a bit of water, muddle until the sugar dissolves. Add two ice cubes and mix with a spoon. Pour in your whisky and stir. Add your orange peel and cherry. After covering the glass with plastic wrap, insert the smoke diffuser. After reaching desired smokeyness, uncover and serve.
Green Tea Cosmo
Green tea seems to be the new craze in cocktails, and cosmo’s are not exempt. If a green tea shot is your go to, try upgrading to this sophisticated option.
What you’ll need:
- 1 ½ oz. vodka
- 1/2 oz. citrus liqueur
- 2 oz. cold green tea
- 1/2 oz. cranberry juice
- 3/4 oz. honey syrup
- 1/2 oz lime juice
- Ice cubes
Combine all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice cubes. Shake vigorously for 8 to 10 seconds. Strain into a margarita glass using an ice strainer.
Apple Cider Moscow Mule
Most bars will offer a unique variation of this classic cocktail. Look out for your bar’s fruity take on this refreshing drink.
What you’ll need:
- 2 oz Ginger beer
- 1.5 oz Vodka
- 2 oz Apple Cider
- 0.5 oz Lime juice
- Ice
- Garnish: Apple slices
Squeeze your lime into the mug. Add ice. Add apple cider, vodka, and ginger beer. Stir to mix.
Espresso Martini
So dinners winding down but you need to pick me up. Try swapping your vodka redbull for an Espresso Martini.
What you’ll need:
- 2 ounces vodka
- 1/2 ounce Kahlúa
- 1 ounce espresso
- 1/2 ounce simple syrup
- Garnish: coffee beans
Add vodka, coffee liqueur, espresso and simple syrup to a shaker filled with ice and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with coffee beans.
Grown Up Jack and Coke
If you’d rather stick to the basics but don’t want to be left out, try ordering a Jack and Coke with lemon.
What you’ll need:
- 2 ounces (¼ cup) Jack Daniels whiskey
- 4 ounces (½ cup) cola
- 1 lemon wedge
Add the Jack Daniels whiskey and ice to a glass and stir to combine. Top with the cola. Squeeze in the juice from the lemon wedge and serve. Garnish with additional lemon wedges.
