A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely across regions of the world, and many websites publish both original recipes and their own interpretations of older and more famous cocktails.
Rum and Coke, or the Cuba libre, is a highball cocktail consisting of cola, rum, and in many recipes lime juice on ice. Traditionally, the cola ingredient is Coca-Cola ("Coke") and the alcohol is a light rum such as Bacardi. However, the drink may be made with various types of rums and cola brands, and lime juice may or may not be included.
Mojito is a traditional Cuban highball. The cocktail often consists of five ingredients: white rum, sugar, lime juice, soda water, and Spearmint. Its combination of sweetness, citrus, and herbaceous mint flavours is intended to complement the rum, and has made the mojito a popular summer drink.
The old fashioned is a cocktail made by muddling sugar with bitters and water, adding whiskey or, less commonly, brandy, and garnishing with orange slice or zest and a cocktail cherry. It is traditionally served in an old fashioned glass, which predated the cocktail.
A margarita is a cocktail consisting of tequila, orange liqueur, and lime juice often served with salt on the rim of the glass. The drink is served shaken with ice, blended with ice, or without ice. Although it has become acceptable to serve a margarita in a wide variety of glass types, ranging from cocktail and wine glasses to pint glasses and even large schooners, the drink is traditionally served in the eponymous margarita glass, a stepped-diameter variant of a cocktail glass or champagne coupe.
The Singapore Sling is a gin-based sling cocktail from Singapore. This long drink was developed sometime before 1915 by bartender Ngiam Tong Boon, who was working at the Long Bar in Raffles Hotel, Singapore. It was initially called the gin sling – a sling was originally a North American drink composed of spirit and water, sweetened and flavored.
A Shirley Temple is a non-alcoholic mixed drink traditionally made with ginger ale and a splash of grenadine, garnished with a maraschino cherry. Modern Shirley Temple recipes may substitute lemon-lime soda or lemonade and sometimes orange juice in part, or in whole. Shirley Temples are often served to children dining with adults in lieu of real cocktails, as are the similar Roy Rogers and Arnold Palmer.
The term punch refers to a wide assortment of drinks, both non-alcoholic and alcoholic, generally containing fruits or fruit juice. The drink was introduced from India to England by employees of the English East India Company. Punch is usually served at parties in large, wide bowls, known as punch bowls.
Limeade is a lime-flavored drink sweetened with sugar. A typical method of preparation is to juice limes, and combine the juice with simple syrup or honey syrup, along with some additional water and perhaps more sugar or honey. Vodka or white tequila can be added to make a limeade cocktail.
The tequila sunrise is a cocktail made of tequila, orange juice, and grenadine syrup. It's served unmixed in a tall glass. The modern drink originates from Sausalito, California, in the early 1970s after an earlier one created in the 1930s in Phoenix, Arizona. The cocktail is named for its appearance when served—with gradations of color resembling a sunrise.
An Irish Car Bomb, Irish Slammer, Irish Bomb Shot, or Dublin Drop is a cocktail, similar to a boilermaker, made by dropping a bomb shot of Irish cream and whiskey into a glass of stout.
A beer cocktail is a cocktail that is made by mixing beer with a distilled beverage or another style of beer. In this type of cocktail, the primary ingredient is beer. A mixture of beer with a beverage that contains a soft drink is usually called a shandy.
Cocktail garnishes are decorative ornaments that add character or style to a mixed drink, most notably to cocktails.
The Alexander is a cocktail consisting of cognac, cocoa liqueur, and cream.
A 7 and 7 is a highball cocktail, a mixed alcoholic drink containing Seagram's Seven Crown and 7 Up. It is typically served with ice.
The Aviation is a classic cocktail made with gin, maraschino liqueur, crème de violette, and lemon juice. Some recipes omit the crème de violette. It is served straight up, in a cocktail glass.
Grape drinks are sweetened drinks with a grape flavor and a deep purple color. They may be carbonated or not (Kool-Aid).
Peanut liqueur is a liqueur produced with peanuts.
