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Ingredients

• 30 ml Cognac
• 30 ml Crème de Cacao (Brown)
• 30 ml Fresh Cream

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice, then strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Freshly grated nutmeg

The story

The original gin Alexander was documented by 1916. The IBA’s brandy version developed later; its exact creator is disputed.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Bitter Campari
• 30 ml Sweet Red Vermouth
• A splash of Soda Water

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Build over ice in an old fashioned glass, add a splash of soda water and stir gently.

Garnish · Half an orange slice and lemon zest

The story

This Italian aperitivo developed from bitter liqueur and vermouth, with soda turning it into a longer drink. Its individual creator is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gin
• 30 ml Apricot Brandy
• 30 ml Calvados

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake the ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Recorded in The Savoy Cocktail Book in 1930. Its creator and precise city of invention are unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Gin
• 15 ml Maraschino Luxardo
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1 Bar Spoon Crème de Violette

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake over cracked ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Maraschino cherry (optional)

The story

Published by New York bartender Hugo Ensslin in 1916. Crème de violette gave the early recipe its sky-coloured appearance and aviation-inspired name.

Ingredients

• 30 ml White Rum
• 30 ml Cognac
• 30 ml Triple Sec
• 20 ml Fresh Lemon Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

A drink under this name appeared in print in 1929, but its ingredients changed across early versions. Its inventor is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Bourbon or Rye Whiskey
• 30 ml Bitter Campari
• 30 ml Sweet Red Vermouth

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir with ice in a mixing glass, then strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Orange zest; lemon zest optional

The story

Harry MacElhone’s account associates this whisky, Campari and vermouth drink with Erskine Gwynne, an American expatriate in Paris.

Ingredients

• 52.5 ml Brandy
• 7.5 ml Maraschino Luxardo
• 1 Bar Spoon Curacao
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1 Bar Spoon Simple Syrup
• 2 Dashes Aromatic Bitters

Glass · Slim cocktail glass

Method · Prepare the glass with a sugar rim and citrus peel; stir the liquid ingredients over ice and strain into it.

Garnish · Sugar-coated rim and orange or lemon peel curled inside the glass

The story

Associated with bartender Joseph Santini in nineteenth-century New Orleans. Its sugared rim and prominent lemon peel distinguish it from an ordinary brandy sour.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Old Tom Gin
• 10 ml Maraschino Luxardo
• 10 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 2 Dashes Orange Bitters

Glass · Rocks Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled rocks glass containing ice.

Garnish · Lemon zest and a maraschino cherry

The story

An early Casino recipe predates Hugo Ensslin’s 1916 version. Why it received its name, and who first made it, remain unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Gin
• 15 ml Raspberry Syrup
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• Few Drops of Egg White

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Fresh raspberries

The story

Named for a Philadelphia social club, although a surviving cocktail reference appeared in a New York newspaper in 1901. Its original bartender is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 60 ml White Cuban Ron
• 20 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 2 Bar Spoons Superfine Sugar

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Dissolve the sugar with the other ingredients in a shaker, add ice, shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Closely associated with Daiquirí, Cuba, and American engineer Jennings Cox. An account by witness Giacomo Pagliuchi supports Cox’s role in its creation.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Gin
• 10 ml Dry Vermouth

Glass · Martini Glass

Method · Stir gin and dry vermouth over ice; strain into a chilled Martini glass.

Garnish · Express lemon peel over the drink, or add a green olive on request

The story

The Martini evolved through several nineteenth-century gin and vermouth drinks. No single creator is established; a recipe titled Dry Martini Cocktail appeared in print in 1904.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Gin
• 30 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 10 ml Simple Syrup
• Splash of Soda Water

Glass · Tall tumbler

Method · Shake everything except soda water with ice; pour into a tall tumbler, add a splash of soda and serve without ice.

Garnish · Lemon slice; lemon zest optional

The story

A nineteenth-century member of the sour and fizz families: gin, citrus and sugar lengthened with sparkling water. Its individual creator is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml London Dry Gin
• 45 ml Sweet Red Vermouth
• 7.5 ml Fernet

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Orange zest

The story

Created by Ada Coleman at the Savoy Hotel’s American Bar in London for actor Charles Hawtrey, who inspired its name.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Gin
• 30 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 15 ml Simple Syrup
• 60 ml Soda Water

Glass · Highball

Method · Build in an ice-filled highball glass and stir gently.

Garnish · Lemon slice and a maraschino cherry

The story

Associated with John Collins, a waiter at Limmer’s Hotel in London. Accounts differ over how directly he created the drink, which developed from gin punch.

Ingredients

• 22.5 ml Gin
• 22.5 ml Green Chartreuse
• 22.5 ml Maraschino Luxardo
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lime Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Linked to Detroit Athletic Club; entertainer Frank Fogarty helped spread it. Murray Stenson’s later revival in Seattle brought it back to prominence. Fogarty’s role as inventor is uncertain.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Rye Whiskey
• 20 ml Sweet Red Vermouth
• 1 dash Angostura Bitters

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Cocktail cherry

The story

A New York cocktail established by the late nineteenth century. The familiar story involving a party hosted by Jennie Churchill is unreliable; its inventor remains unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml London Dry Gin
• 45 ml Sweet Red Vermouth
• 1 Bar Spoon Maraschino Luxardo
• 2 Dashes Orange Bitters

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Lemon zest

The story

An early gin and vermouth drink recorded by O. H. Byron in 1884. Its relationship to the Martini is important, but its inventor and original city remain uncertain.

Ingredients

• 45 ml White Rum
• 45 ml Fresh Pineapple Juice
• 7.5 ml Maraschino Luxardo
• 5 ml Grenadine Syrup

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Named for the film star and associated with Havana’s American-influenced bar scene during US Prohibition. Accounts disagree between bartenders Eddie Woelke and Fred Kaufman.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Dry Gin
• 45 ml Fresh Orange Juice
• Approximately 15 ml Absinthe
• Approximately 15 ml Grenadine Syrup

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Published by Harry MacElhone in 1922 and associated with his Paris bar. Its startling name refers to contemporary, now-discredited claims about rejuvenation.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gin
• 30 ml Bitter Campari
• 30 ml Sweet Red Vermouth

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Build in a chilled old fashioned glass over ice and stir gently.

Garnish · Half an orange slice

The story

The traditional account places it in Florence around 1919: Camillo Negroni reportedly asked bartender Fosco Scarselli to strengthen an Americano with gin. Historians dispute parts of this origin story.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Bourbon or Rye Whiskey
• 1 Sugar Cube
• Few Dashes Angostura Bitters
• Few Dashes Plain Water

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Soak the sugar cube with bitters and a little water, muddle until dissolved, then add ice and whiskey; stir gently.

Garnish · Orange slice or zest, plus a cocktail cherry

The story

Grew from the nineteenth-century whiskey cocktail as drinkers requested the older style of spirit, sugar, bitters and water. It has no confirmed individual inventor.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gin
• 20 ml Apricot Brandy
• 15 ml Fresh Orange Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

A gin, apricot and orange cocktail documented in Harry MacElhone’s 1922 book. Publication does not establish that MacElhone invented it.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Jamaican Rum
• 15 ml Lime Juice
• 30 ml Sugar Cane Juice

Glass · Tumbler

Method · Combine directly in a small tumbler or terracotta glass; adjust dilution to taste.

Garnish · Orange zest

The story

Part of the Caribbean rum punch tradition, often expressed through the old balance of sour, sweet, strong and weak. A single creator or birthplace cannot be confirmed.

Ingredients

• 15 ml Brandy
• 45 ml Red Tawny Port Wine
• 10 ml Egg Yolk

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Freshly grated nutmeg

The story

A port-based member of the older flip family, whose defining element is egg. Its individual creator and city are unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Gin
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 30 ml Sugar Syrup
• 60 ml Cream
• 30ml Egg white
• 3 Dashes Orange Flower Water
• 2 Drops Vanilla Extract
• Soda Water

Glass · Highball

Method · Shake all ingredients except soda with ice for two minutes; double strain, dry shake for one minute, then strain into a highball and top with soda.

The story

Created by Henry Charles Ramos in New Orleans in the late nineteenth century. Cream, citrus and orange flower water helped make it one of the city’s best-known drinks.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Rye Whiskey
• 22.5 ml Sweet Vermouth
• 15 ml Cherry Brandy Luxardo
• 7.5 ml Absinthe

Glass · Coupe glass

Method · Rinse a coupe with absinthe and discard excess; stir the remaining ingredients over ice and strain into the prepared glass.

Garnish · Lemon zest

The story

Charles H. Baker recorded this drink after recalling a night in Havana. Its name invokes the USS Maine and the slogan that followed the ship’s 1898 sinking; Baker did not establish who first invented the recipe.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Scotch Whisky
• 25 ml Drambuie

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Build over ice in an old fashioned glass and stir gently.

Garnish · Lemon zest

The story

Scotch and Drambuie were mixed before the name Rusty Nail became familiar; drinks historian David Wondrich traced the combination to a 1937 drink called the B.I.F. The creator of the named cocktail is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Cognac
• 10 ml Absinthe
• 1 Sugar Cube
• 2 Dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Rinse a chilled old fashioned glass with absinthe; stir the other ingredients over ice, discard rinse ice and excess absinthe, then strain into the glass.

Garnish · Lemon zest

The story

Developed around New Orleans’ Sazerac House and Peychaud’s bitters. Its date, original spirit and individual inventor remain subjects of historical disagreement.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Cognac
• 20 ml Triple Sec
• 20 ml Fresh Lemon Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Appeared in the early 1920s. London and Paris both feature in its competing origin stories; a definitive inventor cannot be established.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Cognac
• 20 ml White Crème de Menthe

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled Martini glass.

Garnish · Mint leaf (optional)

The story

Documented by 1913 and later fashionable as an after-dinner drink in the United States. Its inventor and exact birthplace are unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Old Tom Gin
• 30 ml Dry Vermouth
• 1/2 Bar Spoon Maraschino Luxardo
• 1/4 Bar Spoon of Absinthe
• 3 Dashes Orange Bitters

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled Martini glass.

Garnish · Cherry and lemon zest

The story

Belongs to the early gin and vermouth cocktail tradition and is associated by name with New York’s Tuxedo Club. Its original bartender is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Rye Whiskey
• 30 ml Cognac
• 30 ml Sweet Vermouth
• 1 Bar Spoon Bénédictine
• 2 Dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Orange zest and a maraschino cherry

The story

Created by bartender Walter Bergeron at Hotel Monteleone in New Orleans in the 1930s. Its name refers to the city’s French Quarter.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Bourbon Whiskey
• 25 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 20 ml Sugar Syrup
• Few Drops of Egg White (Optional)

Glass · Cobbler glass; old fashioned glass if served on ice

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a cobbler glass; for a rocks serve, strain over fresh ice into an old fashioned glass.

Garnish · Half an orange slice and a maraschino cherry; orange zest optional

The story

A whiskey expression of the nineteenth-century sour family: spirit, citrus and sugar. No single bartender can reliably be named as its creator.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Gin
• 30 ml Triple Sec
• 20 ml Fresh Lemon Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Harry MacElhone and several other bartenders feature in competing accounts of this drink. Its changing early recipes make a definitive attribution difficult.

Ingredients

• 100 ml Prosecco
• 50 ml White Peach Puree

Glass · Flute

Method · Stir peach purée with Prosecco over ice in a mixing glass and pour into a chilled flute.

The story

Created by Giuseppe Cipriani at Harry’s Bar in Venice. He named the peach and sparkling wine drink after painter Giovanni Bellini.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Vodka
• 20 ml Coffee Liqueur

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Build over ice in an old fashioned glass and stir gently.

The story

Credited to Gustave Tops of the Metropolitan Hotel in Brussels, who made it in 1949 for US ambassador Perle Mesta.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Vodka
• 90 ml Tomato Juice
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 2 dashes Worcestershire Sauce
• Tabasco, Celery Salt, Pepper (Up to taste)

Glass · Rocks Glass

Method · Stir the ingredients with ice in a mixing glass and pour into a rocks glass.

Garnish · Celery and a lemon wedge (optional)

The story

Fernand Petiot, who worked at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris, is a leading claimant. The drink’s precise invention and the origin of its name remain disputed.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Cachaça
• 1 Lime cut into small wedges
• Approximately 20 ml White Cane Sugar (measured by volume)

Glass · Double Old Fashioned

Method · Gently muddle lime and sugar in a double old fashioned glass; add cracked ice and cachaça, then stir.

The story

Emerged from Brazil’s cachaça and lime drinking traditions, with stories linking it to rural São Paulo state. No individual inventor is established.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Gin
• 20 ml Dry Vermouth
• 10 ml Bitter Campari

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Lemon zest

The story

Research presented by Difford’s Guide attributes it to Giovanni Raimondo at Rome’s Excelsior Hotel around 1950; other accounts connect it with Venice. Treat the attribution as researched, rather than certain.

Ingredients

• 90 ml Chilled Champagne
• 10 ml Cognac
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• Few drops of Grand Marnier (optional)
• 1 sugar cube

Glass · Flute

Method · Soak a sugar cube with two dashes of bitters in a large Champagne glass; add Cognac, then slowly add chilled Champagne.

Garnish · Orange zest and a maraschino cherry

The story

An early sparkling wine cocktail already established in nineteenth-century drinking culture. Its inventor and birthplace are unknown.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gin
• 30 ml Cointreau
• 30 ml Lillet Blanc
• 30 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1 dash Absinthe

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Orange zest

The story

Preserved in Harry Craddock’s 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book. Its name belongs to an older family of drinks intended, at least in bar humour, to revive the drinker; its original inventor is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Vodka Citron
• 15 ml Cointreau
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 30 ml Cranberry Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake over ice and strain into a large cocktail glass.

Garnish · Lemon twist

The story

Several bartenders contributed to the modern pink cocktail’s evolution. Cheryl Cook has a documented Miami claim, while later New York versions also shaped the drink known today.

Ingredients

• 50 ml White Rum
• 120 ml Cola
• 10 ml Fresh Lime Juice

Glass · Highball

Method · Build directly in an ice-filled highball glass.

Garnish · Lime wedge

The story

Rum, cola and lime became associated with Cuba and the phrase “Free Cuba”. The familiar military toast story is difficult to verify, so its first bartender remains unknown.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gin
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 15 ml Sugar Syrup
• 60 ml Champagne

Glass · Flute

Method · Shake everything except Champagne, strain into a flute, then add Champagne and stir gently.

The story

Named after a French 75 mm artillery gun associated with the First World War. The familiar gin, lemon, sugar and Champagne combination appears in a 1927 publication; its inventor is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 35 ml Cognac
• 35 ml Amaretto

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Build over ice in an old fashioned glass and stir gently.

The story

Named after the 1971 crime film. This cognac and amaretto combination has no confirmed individual inventor.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Bitter Campari
• 120 ml Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice

Glass · Highball

Method · Build directly in an ice-filled highball glass.

Garnish · Orange wedge

The story

Named for Giuseppe Garibaldi, a central figure in Italian unification. The drink combines two strongly Italian ingredients, Campari and orange; its original bartender is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 20 ml Crème de Cacao (White)
• 20 ml Crème de Menthe (Green)
• 20 ml Fresh Cream

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake briefly with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Mint leaf (optional)

The story

Closely associated with Tujague’s restaurant in New Orleans and bartender Philibert Guichet. Earlier drinks using the same name complicate claims that he invented every version.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Rum
• 40 ml Grapefruit Juice
• 15 ml Maraschino Luxardo
• 15 ml Fresh Lime

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a large cocktail glass.

The story

Developed around Ernest Hemingway’s tastes at El Floridita in Havana. Bartender Constantino Ribalaigua and later additions by Antonio Meilán figure in its evolution; distinguish it from the earlier Papa Doble.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Cognac
• 120 ml Ginger Ale
• Dash of Angostura Bitters (optional)

Glass · Highball

Method · Build Cognac and ginger ale over ice in a highball glass and stir gently; bitters may be added if preferred.

Garnish · Long spiral of lemon peel

The story

Began as a ginger ale drink in the 1890s; spirits were added in later versions. Its unusually long lemon peel gave it its name.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Irish Whiskey
• 120 ml Hot coffee
• 50 ml Fresh cream (Chilled)
• Approximately 5 ml Sugar (measured by volume)

Glass · Irish Coffee Glass

Method · Add hot coffee to a preheated glass, stir in whiskey and sugar until dissolved, then float cold thick cream over a spoon without mixing.

The story

Created by Joe Sheridan for travellers at Foynes, Ireland, in the 1940s. It combines hot coffee, Irish whiskey and cream.

Ingredients

• 90 ml Dry White Wine
• 10 ml Crème de Cassis

Glass · Wine Glass

Method · Pour crème de cassis into the glass and top with white wine.

The story

The white wine and cassis aperitif comes from Dijon. Mayor Félix Kir popularised it and gave it his name, but an earlier local drink existed before him.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Vodka
• 20 ml Triple Sec
• 15 ml Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Descended from the Lemon Drop associated with Norman Jay Hobday’s Henry Africa’s bar in 1970s San Francisco. The precise creator of every later Martini-style version is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 15 ml Vodka
• 15 ml Tequila
• 15 ml White rum
• 15 ml Gin
• 15 ml Cointreau
• 25 ml Lemon juice
• 30 ml Simple syrup
• Top with Cola

Glass · Highball

Method · Build over ice in a highball glass and stir gently.

Garnish · Lemon slice (optional)

The story

Robert “Rosebud” Butt of the Oak Beach Inn on Long Island is a leading claimant from the 1970s. Earlier origin tales exist, so the attribution should remain qualified.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Amber Jamaican Rum
• 30 ml Martinique Molasses Rhum*
• 15 ml Orange Curacao
• 15 ml Orgeat Syrup (Almond)
• 30 ml Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
• 7.5 ml Simple Syrup

Glass · Double rocks glass or highball glass

Method · Shake with ice and pour into a double rocks or highball glass.

Garnish · Pineapple spear, mint leaves and lime peel

The story

Trader Vic’s credits Victor Bergeron with creating it in Oakland in 1944. Its history also contains competing tiki-era claims, so the named original recipe matters.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Tequila 100% Agave
• 20 ml Triple Sec
• 15 ml Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Half-salted rim (optional)

The story

Its inventor remains disputed. A historically plausible explanation is that it developed from the older Daisy cocktail family using tequila.

Ingredients

• 75 ml Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
• 75 ml Prosecco

Glass · Flute

Method · Add orange juice to a flute, slowly add sparkling wine and stir gently.

Garnish · Orange twist (optional)

The story

Commonly linked to Frank Meier at the Ritz in Paris, but Meier did not mark it as his own invention in his 1936 book. The creator remains uncertain.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Bourbon Whiskey
• 4 fresh Mint sprigs
• Approximately 5 ml Powdered Sugar (measured by volume)
• Approximately 10 ml Water

Glass · Julep Cup

Method · Gently muddle mint with sugar and water in a julep cup; add cracked ice and bourbon, then stir until the cup frosts.

Garnish · Mint sprig

The story

A drink with a long history that predates its modern bourbon association. Earlier juleps used other spirits; no single inventor is known.

Ingredients

• 45 ml White Cuban Ron
• 20 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 6 pcs Mint Sprigs
• Approximately 10 ml White Cane Sugar (measured by volume)
• Soda Water

Glass · Highball

Method · Mix mint with sugar and lime juice, add a little soda and ice, pour in rum, top with soda and stir lightly.

Garnish · Mint sprigs and a lime slice

The story

Rooted in Cuban rum, lime and mint drinking traditions. Stories assigning it to one inventor or a single early date are not established.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Smirnoff Vodka
• 120 ml Ginger Beer
• 10 ml Fresh lime juice

Glass · Mule cup or rocks glass

Method · Combine vodka and ginger beer in a mule cup or rocks glass, add lime juice and stir gently.

Garnish · Lime slice

The story

Emerged around vodka and ginger beer promotion in the United States in the 1940s. John Martin and Jack Morgan appear in the best-known account, but competing versions prevent a certain single-creator attribution.

Ingredients

• 50 ml White Rum
• 30 ml Coconut Cream
• 50 ml Fresh Pineapple Juice

Glass · Hurricane

Method · Blend the ingredients with ice, pour into a large glass and serve with straws.

Garnish · Pineapple slice and a cocktail cherry

The story

The Caribe Hilton in San Juan credits its bartender Ramón “Monchito” Marrero with creating it in 1954. Present that specifically as the hotel’s attribution.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Pisco
• 30 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 20 ml Simple Syrup
• 1 Raw whole Egg White

Glass · Goblet

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled goblet.

Garnish · A few dashes of Amargo bitters on top

The story

Strongly associated with Lima and Victor Morris’s bar, but a pisco drink with the sour’s essential ingredients was recorded earlier. Its complete origin cannot be assigned to Morris without qualification.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Cachaca
• 20 ml Sweet Vermouth Cinzano Rosso
• 15 ml Cynar
• 2 Drops Angostura (Optional)

Glass · Rocks glass

Method · Combine in a rocks glass, add ice and stir briefly.

Garnish · Orange twist

The story

Emerged in São Paulo after Cinzano’s Brazilian production helped bring vermouth together with local cachaça in the 1950s. Its individual inventor is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Vodka
• 120 ml Cranberry Juice
• 30 ml Grapefruit Juice

Glass · Highball

Method · Build directly in an ice-filled highball glass.

Garnish · Orange zest and a cherry

The story

The modern vodka, cranberry and grapefruit version grew through twentieth-century cranberry drink promotion and became especially familiar in the 1980s. No individual creator is confirmed.

Ingredients

• 40 ml Vodka
• 20 ml Peach Schnapps
• 40 ml Fresh Orange Juice
• 40 ml Cranberry Juice

Glass · Highball

Method · Build directly in an ice-filled highball glass.

Garnish · Half an orange slice

The story

Rose to prominence in the 1980s. A Florida promotional contest is often cited as its origin, but the precise inventor and first recipe remain uncertain.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gin
• 15 ml Cherry Sangue Morlacco
• 7.5 ml Cointreau
• 7.5 ml DOM Bénédictine
• 120 ml Fresh Pineapple Juice
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 10 ml Grenadine Syrup
• A dash of Angostura bitters

Glass · Hurricane

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a Hurricane glass.

Garnish · Pineapple and a maraschino cherry

The story

Attributed to Ngiam Tong Boon of the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel, Singapore, in the early twentieth century. The drink’s original formulation and later versions should be distinguished.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Tequila
• 90 ml Fresh Orange Juice
• 15 ml Grenadine Syrup

Glass · Highball

Method · Add tequila and orange juice to an ice-filled highball glass, then pour in grenadine and leave unstirred for the sunrise effect.

Garnish · Half an orange slice or orange zest

The story

The familiar orange juice and grenadine version is credited to Bobby Lozoff at the Trident in Sausalito, California, around 1970. Earlier drinks shared its name.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Gin
• 15 ml Vodka
• 7.5 ml Lillet Blanc

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Lemon zest

The story

The famous gin and vodka version was introduced through Ian Fleming’s 1953 novel Casino Royale and named for the character Vesper Lynd. An earlier, different drink also bore the name.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Jamaican dark rum
• 45 ml Gold Puerto Rican rum
• 30 ml Demerara Rum
• 20 ml Fresh lime juice
• 15 ml Falernum
• 15 ml Donn’s Mix*
• Approximately 5 ml Grenadine syrup
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• 6 drops Pernod

Glass · Tumbler

Method · Pulse-blend the ingredients with 170 g of cracked ice for a few seconds; pour into a tall tumbler.

Garnish · Mint leaves

The story

Created by Donn Beach, also known as Don the Beachcomber, within the early tiki movement in California. Beach changed his recipe over time, so there is no single uncontested specification.

Ingredients

• 52.5 ml Dry Gin
• Approximately 10 ml Honey Syrup
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 22.5 ml Fresh Orange Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Dissolve honey in the citrus juices, add gin, shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Lemon or orange zest (optional)

The story

Documented in Paris in 1929. Contemporary accounts variously connect it with Ritz bartender Frank Meier and American socialite Margaret Brown; its inventor remains disputed.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Gin
• 25 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 12.5 ml Sugar Syrup
• 15 ml Crème de Mûre

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Shake everything except crème de mûre with ice, strain over crushed ice in an old fashioned glass, then drizzle the liqueur on top.

Garnish · Lemon slice and blackberries (optional)

The story

Created by Dick Bradsell at Fred’s Club in Soho, London, in the mid-1980s. Bradsell described the drink’s creation himself.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Cuban Aguardiente
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 15 ml Raw Honey
• 50 ml Water

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Mix honey, water and lime juice against the glass interior; add cracked ice and rum, then stir energetically from bottom to top.

Garnish · Lime wedge

The story

Associated with Trinidad, Cuba, and preserved through local tradition. Claims about its precise nineteenth-century creator or invention date require further documentation.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Green Chartreuse
• 30 ml Fresh Pineapple Juice
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 15 ml Falernum

Glass · Collins

Method · Add the ingredients to a tall glass with pebble ice, swizzle vigorously and fill up with more pebble ice.

Garnish · Mint leaves and grated nutmeg

The story

Created by Marco Dionysos in San Francisco in the early 2000s. Published accounts differ on its exact year and venue, so those details need a final source check.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Goslings Rum
• 100 ml Ginger Beer

Glass · Highball

Method · Fill a highball glass with ice, add ginger beer and float the rum on top.

Garnish · Lime wedge or slice

The story

A Bermuda rum and ginger beer drink associated with Goslings. Goslings traces its beginnings to a ginger beer factory connected with the Royal Naval Officer’s Club; an individual inventor is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Gold Jamaican Rum
• 15 ml Cuban Rum
• 15 ml Passion Fruit Syrup
• 15 ml Fresh lime juice
• 15 ml Honey Syrup

Glass · Footed copo glass

Method · Blend briefly with crushed ice in a milkshake mixer, pour into a footed copo glass and add more crushed ice.

Garnish · Half a passion fruit

The story

Associated with Donn Beach’s tiki bartending in California. Published accounts differ on its exact date and early name, so those details remain pending verification.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Vodka
• 30 ml Kahlúa
• 10 ml Sugar Syrup
• 1 strong Espresso

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Three coffee beans

The story

Created by Dick Bradsell in London, originally under another name and served differently. Its later Martini presentation became the enduring version.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Fernet Branca
• Fill up with Cola

Glass · Double old fashioned glass

Method · Pour Fernet-Branca into an ice-filled double old fashioned glass, add cola and stir gently.

The story

Fernet with cola became closely identified with Córdoba, Argentina. A story credits bartender Oscar “el Negro” Becerra, but its inventor and original date are unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Vodka
• 15 ml Raspberry Liqueur
• 15 ml Fresh Pineapple Juice

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Express lemon peel oil over the drink

The story

Emerged in New York’s late-1980s cocktail culture; Dale DeGroff later put it on Pravda’s menu. Its original creator is unconfirmed, and it should not simply be credited to Chambord’s marketing team.

Ingredients

• 60ml Gin
• 22.5 ml Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
• 22.5 ml Sugar Syrup
• 10 pcs Italian Basil leaves

Glass · Chilled cocktail glass

Method · Shake vigorously with ice and pour into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Created by Jörg Meyer in Hamburg in 2008. Its generous use of fresh basil helped turn a modern gin sour into an international bar staple.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Tequila 100% agave
• 30 ml Grand Marnier
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice

Glass · Margarita Glass

Method · Salt the rim of a rocks glass; shake the ingredients with ice for ten seconds and strain into the ice-filled glass.

Garnish · Lime slice

The story

A Margarita variation featuring Grand Marnier. The brand describes its popularity in the 1980s, but I cannot confirm one original bartender or city.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Ron Profundo Havana Club
• 30 ml Ron Smoky Havana Club
• 15 ml Licor Amaretto
• 5 ml Licor Frangelico
• 5 drops Maraschino Luxardo
• 30 ml Passion Fruit Puree
• 90 Fresh Pineapple Juice
• 30 Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 pc Gengibre Slice

Glass · Tiki Mug

Method · Muddle a thin slice of ginger in a shaker, add the other ingredients, shake with ice and strain over pebble ice in a chilled tiki glass.

Garnish · Citrus fruit and a slice of dehydrated pineapple

The story

A modern IBA-listed tiki drink built around rum and tropical fruit. Creator, city and date: pending verification from a reliable original account.

The IBA page does not specify units for two juice quantities. Check the official source before preparing this drink.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Espadin Mezcal
• 15 ml Jamaica Overproof White Rum
• 15 ml Falernum
• 1 Bar Spoon Maraschino Luxardo
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 15 ml Simple Syrup
• Few Drops of Egg White (Optional)

Glass · Chilled cocktail glass; terracotta mug if served on ice

Method · Shake vigorously with ice; strain into a chilled cocktail glass or over ice in a clay or terracotta mug.

The story

A mezcal-based modern Margarita variation on the IBA list. Its creator, city and date are not reliably established in the sources reviewed.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Blackstrap rum
• 22.5 ml Campari
• 45 ml Pineapple juice
• 15 ml Freshly Squeezed Lime juice
• 15 ml Demerara sugar syrup

Glass · Rocks glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass.

Garnish · Pineapple wedge

The story

Created by beverage manager Jeffrey Ong as a welcome drink for the Kuala Lumpur Hilton’s opening in 1973. It joined tropical flavours with Campari.

Ingredients

• 30 ml White rum
• 15 ml Peach Brandy
• 15 ml Fresh lime juice
• 30 ml Honey Mix
• 10 pcs Mint Leaves
• 3 to 4 pcs Pineapple Chunks

Glass · Hurricane

Method · Blend all ingredients with approximately 120 ml of crushed ice, measured by volume, and serve in a Coppa grande.

Garnish · Mint sprig and a pineapple slice

The story

Associated with Donn Beach and his California tiki bars. Its precise first recipe and creation date need further verification.

Ingredients

• 22.5 ml Mezcal
• 22.5 ml Yellow Chartreuse
• 22.5 ml Aperol
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lime Juice

Glass · Chilled cocktail glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Created by Joaquín Simó in 2011. It became associated with Death & Co. in New York, although Simó says it appeared earlier on menus in Paris and Portland.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Rye Whiskey or Bourbon
• 22.5 ml Simple syrup
• 30 ml Fresh lemon juice
• Few Drops of Egg White
• 15 ml Red wine (Shiraz or Malbech)

Glass · Rocks glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass; float the wine on top.

Garnish · Lemon or orange zest with a cherry

The story

Despite its name, one researched account traces this whiskey sour with a red wine float to Chicago in the 1880s. Its individual bartender is unknown.

Ingredients

• 6/8 pcs Mint Leaves
• 45 ml Aged Rum
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 30 ml Simple Syrup
• 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters
• 60 ml Brut Champagne or Prosecco

Glass · Chilled cocktail glass

Method · Shake everything except sparkling wine with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass and top with sparkling wine.

Garnish · Mint sprigs

The story

Created by Audrey Saunders in New York in the early 2000s. It combines an aged rum and mint sour with sparkling wine; published accounts differ on the precise year.

Ingredients

• 50 ml 100% Agave Tequila
• 5 ml Fresh lime
• A pinch of Salt
• 100 ml Pink Grapefruit Soda

Glass · Highball

Method · Pour tequila and lime juice into a highball glass, add ice and salt, top with pink grapefruit soda and stir gently.

Garnish · Lime slice

The story

A Mexican tequila and grapefruit drink whose inventor is unconfirmed. The frequent attribution to Don Javier Delgado Corona of La Capilla is disputed.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Bourbon Whiskey
• 30 ml Amaro Nonino
• 30 ml Aperol
• 30 ml Fresh Lemon Juice

Glass · Chilled cocktail glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Created by Sam Ross for The Violet Hour in Chicago in 2007. Its name refers to the M.I.A. song playing while the team worked on the drink.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Blended scotch whisky
• 7.5 ml Lagavulin 16y
• 22.5 ml Fresh lemon juice
• 22.5 ml Honey syrup
• 2-3 quarter size sliced fresh ginger

Glass · Old Fashioned

Method · Muddle fresh ginger in a shaker; add everything except Islay whisky, shake with ice, fine strain over fresh ice and float the whisky.

Garnish · Candied ginger slices

The story

Created by Sam Ross at Milk & Honey in New York in 2005. Its combination of Scotch, honey, ginger and lemon inspired its medicinal name.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Pisco
• 22.5 ml Fresh Pineapple Juice
• 15 ml Simple Syrup
• 15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 30 ml Dry White Wine
• 3 pcs Cloves

Glass · Goblet

Method · Gently muddle cloves with simple syrup, add the other ingredients except wine, shake and double strain into a large goblet; add wine and stir gently.

The story

Made famous at San Francisco’s Bank Exchange Saloon, especially under bartender Duncan Nicol. Accounts of the drink before Nicol mean its sole invention should not be attributed to him without qualification.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Vanilla Vodka
• 20 ml Passion Fruit Liqueur
• 50 ml Passion Fruit Puree
• 2 Bar Spoons Vanilla Sugar
• 50 ml Champagne to serve on the side

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice, double strain into a large chilled cocktail glass and serve with a separate shot of Champagne.

Garnish · Passion fruit half and sugar

The story

Created by Douglas Ankrah at The Townhouse in London in 2002. An earlier name was Maverick Martini; sparkling wine is often served alongside.

Ingredients

• 25 ml Vodka
• 25 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 15 ml Creme de Cassis
• 10 ml Sugar Syrup
• Top up with Sparkling Wine

Glass · Tall tumbler

Method · Shake everything except sparkling wine with ice, strain into an ice-filled tall tumbler and top with sparkling wine.

Garnish · Blackberries; lemon slice optional

The story

Created by Dick Bradsell in London. Bradsell described it as a powerful sparkling wine punch built from a vodka and cassis base.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Amontillado sherry
• 45 ml Palo Cortado
• Approximately 5 ml Superfine Sugar (or granulated), measured by volume
• 1/2 Orange Wheel
• 1/2 Lemon Wheel

Glass · Julep cocktail cup

Method · Shake sherry and sugar with two quarter-wheels each of orange and lemon; strain over crushed ice in a julep cup.

Garnish · Fresh berries plus a quarter-wheel each of orange and lemon; serve with straws

The story

A hugely popular nineteenth-century American drink that helped spread the culture of American-style bars abroad. Its individual inventor is unknown.

Ingredients

• 60 ml London dry Gin
• 30 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 15 ml Simple syrup
• 5/6 Mint leaves
• Few drops Egg white (Optional)

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and double strain into a chilled cocktail glass; shake more vigorously when using egg white.

Garnish · Mint sprigs

The story

Its origins are debated. Prohibition-era New York and Chicago stories persist, while historical research also traces related mint drinks to nineteenth-century Long Island.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Vodka Vanilla
• 15 ml Elderflower Cordial
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 10 ml Monin Honey Syrup
• 2 thin Slices Red Chili Pepper

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake with ice and double strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish · Red chilli pepper

The story

Created by Salvatore Calabrese for his London bar Fifty around 2004–05, where it became a menu signature.

Ingredients

• 90 ml Prosecco
• 60 ml Aperol
• Splash of Soda water

Glass · Wine Glass

Method · Build over ice in a wine glass and stir gently.

Garnish · Orange slice

The story

Developed from the northern Italian custom of lengthening wine with water, especially around Venice and Veneto. The modern bitter aperitivo version evolved later; it has no single inventor.

Ingredients

• 30 ml Cognac or Brandy
• 30 ml Gin
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters
• Top up Ginger beer

Glass · Collins

Method · Shake everything except ginger beer with ice, pour unstrained into a Collins glass or mug and top with ginger beer.

Garnish · Mint sprig; orange slice optional

The story

Associated with bartender Joe Scialom and wartime Cairo. The frequently repeated details of its first service require careful checking before publishing a precise date or venue as fact.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Rhum Martinique Agricole
• 15 ml Blended Aged Rum
• 7.5 ml Falernum
• 7.5 ml Allspice Saint Elizabeth
• 15 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 15 ml Fresh Orange juice
• 15 ml Honey Syrup
• 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters

Glass · Footed copo glass

Method · Flash-blend with crushed ice, pour into a footed copo glass and add more crushed ice. Ice quantity: pending verification; the source does not specify whether its quantity refers to weight or volume.

Garnish · Three cherries and a rectangular piece of pineapple

The story

Created by Donn Beach during the Second World War. Its name represents the Morse code letter V, for victory.

Ingredients

• 50 ml Irish Whiskey
• 25 ml Sweet Red Vermouth
• 15 ml Green Chartreuse
• 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Stir over ice and strain into a chilled Martini glass.

Garnish · Orange slice

The story

Documented in Hugo Ensslin’s 1916 recipe book. Its Irish name echoes the era’s well-known song, but the story of a particular customer inspiring it is unconfirmed.

Ingredients

• 60 ml Tequila 100% agave
• 30 ml Fresh Lime Juice
• 30 ml Agave Nectar

Glass · Chilled rocks glass with ice

Method · Shake with ice and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass.

Garnish · Lime slice

The story

Created by Julio Bermejo at Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant in San Francisco in the 1990s. Agave syrup replaces the orange liqueur of a conventional Margarita.

Ingredients

• 45 ml Angostura Bitters
• 30 ml Orgeat Syrup
• 22.5 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
• 15 ml Rye Whiskey

Glass · Chilled cocktail glass

Method · Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The story

Created by Giuseppe Gonzalez in New York in 2009. Its unusually large measure of Angostura bitters makes it distinct from most classic sours.

Ingredients

• 45 ml White Smooth Grappa
• 22.5 ml Fresh lemon Juice
• 15 ml Honey mix (replace water with chamomile)*
• 15 ml Chamomile cordial
• Few Drops of Egg White (Optional)

Glass · Cocktail Glass

Method · Shake vigorously with ice and strain into a chilled small tumbler containing ice.

Garnish · Lemon zest and white grapes

The story

Created through work by Italian bartenders Samuele Ambrosi and Leonardo Veronesi in 2019. It places grappa at the centre of a contemporary cocktail.