5 Tips to Take Your DIY Cocktails From Basic To Totally Chic!
You know that feeling when it’s been a long day, and all you want is to get comfy in your jammies, order take-out and sip on a delicious mixed drink while watching your favourite TV show? Yeah, I can see you nodding from behind this screen too.
While most of this is doable, I always get stuck when making cocktails. Even simple cocktails just don’t taste the same as the ones you get at a bar. After oodles of research and trial and error, I found tiny tricks that made all the difference!
Let’s get cocktail-ing!
1. Ever so salty
You’ll be surprised how much of a difference salt makes to the overall taste. Salt works as a binder, enhancing the taste of each ingredient and adding to its flavour profile. For instance, it highlights the sweet and sour flavours of some cocktails and blocks out the bitterness of others. Can you imagine a Bloody Mary without salt? Wait, actually, don’t imagine, save yourself the trouble and salt your Bloody Marys.
2. Quality over quantity
There’s a reason why bartenders measure the amount of alcohol that goes into each cocktail. Keeping a check on how much alcohol goes into each cocktail helps them maintain consistency and bring out the flavour profile that was meant to be.
Pro tip: Write down your recipe to the T after experimenting all you want. This saves you the trouble the next time you need to whip up a cocktail for yourself. Or, simply check out these easy cocktail recipes by a bartender who knows it all.
3. Use the right ice
The bigger the better might not be the way to go when it comes to ice. Understanding what kind of ice to use across different spirits is essential when you make drinks at home. A big block of ice works for a whisky Old Fashioned, but a Smirnoff vodka Caprioska or other frozen cocktails taste best with crushed ice.
4. Spice it up
Using appropriate spices is literally what elevates every drink ever made! While I don’t like the idea of being restricted to general pairings, I like keeping basic flavours in mind. Like a whisky-based cocktail would go best with ginger or cinnamon, but these ingredients with gin wouldn’t bring out either flavour too well, IMO. Experiment according to your taste buds and find a recipe that works for you!
5. Chill your cocktail glass
You don’t want to be ready with your chilled Martini only to serve it in a glass that was stored in a musty warm cabinet. Your drink will taste much better when it’s poured into a cold/frozen glass. Depending on what cocktail you’re making, you might want to chill your cocktail glass by keeping it in the refrigerator. But make sure you don’t keep it in there for too long. Just pop them in when you start your cocktail prep and they should be cool enough when it’s time to pour.
Are you guys taking notes because these tips will help you to be the next best home bartender of the group?
*Drink responsibly!
