Cocktail Construction

It doesn't take much more than a generous hand, decent whisky, a comfortable glass and hard-frozen ice to fix an unimpeachable Scotch on the rocks. But a cocktail is something else again. It helps to know that a recipe is essentially a chemical formula, and drinks are not so much mixed as built. You want to measure ingredients as meticulously as a draftsman constructs a blueprint. It won't ruin a drink if you're a few milliliters off, but a (continued on page 274) Cocktail Construction(continued from page 187) connoisseur of that particular call will perceive a difference. So give the following formulas your personal best--and serve up 1984 in style.

[recipe_title]Whiskey Sour[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. whiskey[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. lemon juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 teaspoon superfine sugar[/drinkRecipe]

Orange slice and cherry with stem

Shake whiskey, lemon juice and sugar briskly with cracked ice. Strain into sour glass or smallish wineglass. Decorate with orange slice and cherry.

Option: Use the spirit of your choice-- bourbon, Scotch, American blend or Irish whiskey, brandy, gin, tequila, vodka, rum. They all work well in this recipe.

[recipe_title]Old Fashioned[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 teaspoon superfine sugar, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]2 dashes Angostura bitters[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]2 teaspoons club soda[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]2 ozs. bourbon or other whiskey[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 slice orange, lemon slice, cherry with stem[/drinkRecipe]

Add sugar, bitters and soda to heavy-bottomed old fashioned glass. Mix with wooden muddler until sugar is completely dissolved; take the time to do a thorough job or the drink will finish sweet. Add ice cubes to glass, then pour in whiskey. Stir well to chill. Decorate with orange, lemon and cherry or fresh fruit in season.

Option: To modify the bitters accent, use only one dash or substitute Peychaud's bitters for the Angostura.

[recipe_title]Gin And Tonic[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]2 ozs. gin[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Lime wedge[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]4 ozs. chilled tonic, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

Place ice cubes in highball glass, add gin, squeeze in juice of lime wedge and add wedge to glass. Stir well. Pour in tonic, to your pleasure; stir quickly. Be attentive when adding mixer. This drink is often made with too much tonic.

Option: Use vodka instead of gin to make a vodka and tonic.

[recipe_title]Screwdriver[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 ozs. vodka[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]4 ozs. chilled orange juice, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 slice orange[/drinkRecipe]

Place ice cubes in 8-oz. wineglass. Add vodka and orange juice, to your pleasure. Stir well to chill. Hang orange slice on rim of glass.

Option: Add 2 teaspoons Grand Marnier, Cointreau or other orange liqueur to deepen orange taste.

[recipe_title]Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 ozs. white rum[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Scant teaspoon superfine sugar[/drinkRecipe]

Shake ingredients briskly with cracked ice to chill and dissolve sugar. Strain into chilled cocktail glass or over fresh ice in old fashioned glass.

Option: For a frozen daiquiri, buzz all ingredients, with 1/2 cup finely crushed ice, in blender until slushy. Pour into chilled wineglass.

[recipe_title]Margarita[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]Table salt[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 ozs, tequila[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 oz. triple sec[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3/4 oz. lime juice[/drinkRecipe]

To frost rim of cocktail glass with salt, moisten outside surface of glass at the very top with lime juice, no more than 1/8 in. wide. Sprinkle shallow layer of salt onto flat plate. Invert glass and set straight down in salt; don't turn glass. Lift and tap lightly to remove excess salt. Set aside. Shake remaining ingredients briskly with cracked ice, to chill. Strain into glass.

Option: Superfine or coarse salt is sometimes used, but neither is recommended.

[recipe_title]Bloody Mary[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 ozs. vodka[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3 ozs. thick tomato juice, chilled[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 dash Worcestershire sauce, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]2 dashes Tabasco, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Pepper and salt (if desired), to taste Lemon wedge[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Cherry tomatoes[/drinkRecipe]

Chill footed goblet or 6-oz. tumbler. Stir vodka, tomato juice and seasonings with cracked ice in chilled container. Strain into prepared glass. Taste and correct seasonings if necessary. Squeeze in juice of lemon wedge, add wedge to glass. Stir once. Impale two cherry tomatoes on bamboo pick and plant in glass.

Option: Use vegetable juice instead of tomato juice for a tangier cocktail.

[recipe_title]Martini[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]2 ozs. English gin[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/4 oz. dry vermouth[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Pitted olive, rinsed[/drinkRecipe]

Chill ingredients, utensils and cocktail glass. Stir gin and vermouth with cracked ice until well chilled. Strain into glass. Spear olive on pick and place in glass.

Option: Substitute strip of lemon peel for olive. Twist strip sharply, directly over glass, so lemon oils spray surface of drink. Rub moist side of peel around rim of glass and discard.

[recipe_title]Manhattan[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 ozs. bourbon or American blended whiskey[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/4 oz. sweet vermouth[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Dash of bitters[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Cherry with stem[/drinkRecipe]

Chill cocktail glass. Stir whiskey, vermouth and bitters with cracked ice until well chilled. Strain into glass; drop in cherry.

Option: To make a rob roy, substitute Scotch for bourbon or American blended whiskey.

[recipe_title]Tom Collins[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]2 ozs. gin[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. fresh lemon juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 teaspoon superfine sugar[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Club soda, chilled[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Lemon slice or cherry[/drinkRecipe]

Shake gin, lemon juice and sugar briskly with cracked ice. Strain over ice cubes in collins glass. Add club soda to taste. Stir quickly. Add lemon slice or cherry or both. Insert straws if you wish.

Option: Substitute long strip of cucumber peel for lemon/cherry garnish.

[recipe_title]Black Russian[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 1/2 ozs. vodka[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3/4 oz. Kahlúa or other coffee liqueur[/drinkRecipe]

Add ice cubes to roly-poly glass; pour in vodka and coffee liqueur. Stir well to chill.

Option: Pack glass with finely crushed ice. Combine spirits and pour into glass. Serve with short straws.

[recipe_title]Scotch Highball[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]2 ozs. Scotch whisky[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Chilled club soda[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Lemon slice[/drinkRecipe]

Pack highball glass with ice cubes. Pour in whisky; stir. Add soda; stir quickly. Hang lemon on rim of glass.

Option: Use ice water, mineral water or ginger ale instead of club soda.

All kinds of seasonal drinks, from mulls and glöggs to wassails and eggnogs, surface at holiday fetes. Some folks enjoy them, some don't. But the classic cocktails detailed above are bound to please the gamut of tastes. After all, that's why they're classics!