Simple Cocktail Mixing

Looking for a unique drink to make and sip during your weekends? Try mixing simple cocktail recipes yourself. Cocktails are mixed drinks that are often iced, flavored, sweetened and added with alcohol. They are usually found in bars, pubs and nightclubs, made by mostly professional bartenders. Although creating cocktails takes creativity, skill and flair to a certain extend, it can be quite rewarding once you get the hang of it. It may seem like a high mountain to climb, but the good news is this - learning such skills isn’t as hard as it seems, anyone is capable of making a decent drink once they’ve tried their hands at it, like they say, "practice makes perfect." So let’s get started. Here are some easy recipes for you to try out:

Summer Breeze

What you need:
- 2 highball glasses
- 100ml Grey Goose orange vodka (or Absolute Mandrin)
- 25ml elderflower cordial
- 100ml cranberry juice
- Hard ice cubes
- Garnish: sprigs of mint or apple fans

Method - Fill the glasses with ice. Pour in the vodka, elderflower cordial and the juices, stir and garnish with a sprig of mint or apple fan.

Mango Caipirinha

What you need:
- 2 wine glasses
- 1 lime cut into 12 half wedges
- 4 slices of ripe mango
- 1 tablespoon of caster sugar
- 100ml cachaca (sugar cane spirit)
- Crushed ice

Method - Muddle the lime, mango and sugar together, after which add a scoop of crushed ice and cachaca. Stir thoroughly and divide between the 2 glasses, adding more crushed ice to the top then stir again. Garnish with a mango fan.

Loretto Lemonade

What you need:
- 2 high glasses
- 75m; Maker’s Mark Bourbon
- 25ml Midori (melon liqueur)
- 1 teaspoon gomme syrup
- Juice of 1 lime
- 100ml cloudy apple juice
- 100ml ginger beer
- Hard ice cubes

Method - Fill each glass half full of ice, then add the Bourbon, Midori, gomme syrup and fruit juices. Stir well, filling up with ice and top up with ginger beer.

So experiment with cocktail mixing, and you will gradually create the perfect taste, a drink that is not to strong nor weak, something that suits you and your friends. So give it a go. At the end of the day, not only do you learn a new skill like bartending, you get the pleasure of chilling out with a glass of uniqueness, which you can be proud of!