Mixed drinks have been around for a long period of time, but the origins of the cocktail are very unclear and it is difficult to find them. The term cocktail was first seen in a British newspaper in March, 1798. But the term as we know it, was defined around 1806 as a mix of spirits, water, sugar and bitters.
From the 1860s liqueurs were added to the content of some cocktails and in 1862 the first bartenders’ guide (or “How to mix drinks”) that had cocktail recipes in it, was published by Jerry Thomas, the grandfather of mixology. At the same time, traveling was becoming more popular and the industrialization was rising, so one very important ingredient was added to the cocktail history – the ice.
Cocktails survived through the Prohibition, then the Tiki culture grew big and gave attention to different cocktail cultures and it was in the 90s when few bartenders in New York started bringing back to life some classic, historical cocktails.Today, we can enjoy thousands of great cocktail recipes made with best quality liquors!
Here we have four old, but still amazingly tasty cocktails.
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Sazerac
The official cocktail of New Orleans and one of the first cocktails noted, has the right to be called timeless. It got its name after the brand of cognac that was used at the time it was invented. It was in the late 1800s and the cognac was Sazerac de Forge et Fils.
Sazerac is a strong cocktail mixed of rye, absinthe and Peychaud’s bitters. To prepare this cocktail you need two glasses. Start with rinsing one glass with absinthe and keep it aside. Then mix up Peychaud’s bitters, sugar and a little bit water in the other glass and mix it well. Add rye and ice and stir for half a minute. Add cognac and strain the second glass into the first one, garnish with lemon peel and it’s ready to be served.
Pisco Sour
The South American brandy, first made in the second half of the 18th century, assumingly somewhere in Peru by an English boat captain who mixed the pisco. Since then it became the most common way of consuming pisco. Pisco drinks have been mixed by the local population for ages, so now the origin of pisco sour is a dispute between Chile and Peru. Peru honored pisco sour with its own national holiday recently.
Pisco Sour is a fresh drink with tiny, delicate floral taste. Put an egg white, lime, simple syrup and pisco in a shaker and shake well until egg white is foamy. Then add ice to the shaker and shake it for about 10 seconds. Finish with dash bitters on top of the egg white foam.
Mint Julep
Originally used as a cure for very strong stomach aches, but with time it became a popular cocktail mostly made to bear the hot summer days. Today it is closely associated to the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky’s pride and joy and an edible icon of an entire culture.
Mint Julep is a perfect combination of bourbon and fresh mint. To prepare it you need to put sugar and water in a tall glass and stir until the sugar dissolves. Muddle gently the mint leaves as it is very important not to release the bitter flavors in the mint leaf. Add crushed ice to the half glass and bourbon. Stir until they combine. Then fill the glass with crushed ice to top and stir until the glass frosts on the outside. Garnish with mint spring and serve with a frost straw.
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Sidecar
Not so old as the previous cocktails on this list, invented at the time of World War I. In the 1920s Sidecar was very popular in Paris and London. It got the name after the motorcycle appendage. Its origins are quite mysterious, so no one really knows where it was made first and how it got the name. One of the theories says that the bartenders used to serve the extra liquid of it in a shaker with a glass, hence “sidecar”. Placed in the same Sour category as tequila classic, Sidecar is often compared to Margarita. So if you can make a Margarita, Sidecar will be an easy one for you!
It is a magical cocktail of brandy, orange liqueur and lemon juice. Its structure is very simple, but mixing the ingredients right is what makes Sidecar so unforgettable. Make sure you start with cutting a lemon wedge and run it around the rim of a glass. Dip that rim in sugar to get a fine crust and chill the glass. Then pour cognac, orange liqueur (if you can get Cointreau, is recommendable), fresh lemon juice and add some sugar. Fill it with ice. Shake it and strain into the chilled glass. If necessary, garnish with orange or lemon