🍸 15 Classic Cocktails Everyone Should Know (And How to Master Them at Home)

Elegant, timeless, and easier than you think - 15 Classic Cocktails for any occasion

There’s something effortlessly cool about knowing how to make a classic cocktail. It’s like owning a crisp white shirt or a well-tailored blazer — simple, iconic, and always appropriate. Whether you’re hosting a dinner party, planning a cosy night in, or just want to impress your mates with a well-balanced Negroni, these cocktails have stood the test of time for a reason.

In this guide, you’ll find:

• Step-by-step recipes for 15 iconic cocktails
• Exact measurements
• Bar tools you’ll need
• Professional tips for balance and presentation

Let’s shake, stir, and serve.

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🍹 Cocktail Essentials – What You’ll Need

Before we dive in, make sure your bar is stocked with the basics:

Spirits:

• Vodka
• Gin
• White rum
• Dark/aged rum
• Bourbon or whisky
• Tequila
• Dry vermouth
• Sweet vermouth
• Cointreau or Triple Sec
• Campari

Mixers & Garnishes:

• Soda water
• Tonic
• Cola
• Fresh lime, lemon, orange
• Sugar syrup
• Angostura bitters
• Ice cubes (and crushed ice if possible)

Tools:

• Cocktail shaker
• Jigger (for measuring)
• Muddler
• Strainer
• Bar spoon
• Citrus juicer
• Coupe or martini glasses, highball glasses, tumblers

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🍸 The 15 Classics (Every Home Bar Should Know)

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1. Old Fashioned

Ingredients:

• 50ml bourbon or rye
• 1 sugar cube
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• Orange peel

Instructions:
Muddle sugar and bitters in a rocks glass. Add ice, then whisky. Stir and garnish with orange zest.

🧠 Tip: Use a single large cube of ice for slower dilution.

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2. Negroni

Ingredients:

• 25ml gin
• 25ml Campari
• 25ml sweet vermouth

Stir over ice, strain into a rocks glass, garnish with orange peel.

🔗 Internal link: Negroni Sbagliato — a lighter sparkling version.

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3. Martini

Ingredients:

• 60ml gin or vodka
• 10ml dry vermouth
• Lemon twist or olive

Stir (or shake) with ice, strain into a chilled martini glass.

🧠 Dry = less vermouth / Wet = more. Adjust to taste.

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4. Margarita

Ingredients:

• 50ml tequila
• 25ml lime juice
• 20ml triple sec

Shake with ice, strain into a salt-rimmed glass.

🍋 Use freshly squeezed lime — it makes all the difference.

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5. Whisky Sour

Ingredients:

• 50ml bourbon
• 25ml lemon juice
• 15ml sugar syrup
• (Optional) 15ml egg white

Shake all ingredients hard with ice. Strain into a coupe glass.

🎙️ The egg white adds silky texture and classic foam.

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6. Manhattan

Ingredients:

• 50ml rye whisky
• 25ml sweet vermouth
• 2 dashes bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a martini or coupe glass. Garnish with a cherry.

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7. Mojito

Ingredients:

• 50ml white rum
• 6 mint leaves
• 25ml lime juice
• 2 tsp sugar
• Soda water

Muddle mint, lime and sugar. Add rum and ice. Top with soda and garnish with mint.

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8. Daiquiri

Ingredients:

• 50ml white rum
• 25ml lime juice
• 15ml sugar syrup

Shake and strain into a coupe. Elegant, tart, and criminally underrated.

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9. Cosmopolitan

Ingredients:

• 40ml vodka
• 20ml Cointreau
• 10ml lime juice
• 30ml cranberry juice

Shake with ice, strain into a martini glass. Garnish with orange zest.

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10. Espresso Martini

Ingredients:

• 40ml vodka
• 20ml coffee liqueur
• 30ml fresh espresso
• 10ml sugar syrup

Shake hard to create foam, strain into a martini glass. Top with 3 coffee beans.

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11. Gin & Tonic

Ingredients:

• 50ml gin
• 100ml tonic
• Lime or cucumber garnish

Serve over lots of ice in a balloon or highball glass.

🧊 Chilled tonic is essential to avoid dilution.

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12. Pimm’s Cup

Ingredients:

• 50ml Pimm’s No.1
• Lemonade
• Sliced strawberries, cucumber, mint

Build in a tall glass over ice. Classic summer garden party drink.

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13. Tom Collins

Ingredients:

• 50ml gin
• 25ml lemon juice
• 15ml sugar syrup
• Soda water

Shake gin, lemon, syrup — top with soda in a highball glass.

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14. Bloody Mary

Ingredients:

• 50ml vodka
• 100ml tomato juice
• 10ml lemon juice
• 2 dashes Worcestershire
• Tabasco to taste
• Salt, pepper, celery stick

Build in a tall glass and stir gently. Brunch in a glass.

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15. Pornstar Martini

Ingredients:

• 50ml vanilla vodka
• 25ml passion fruit purée
• 15ml lime juice
• 15ml sugar syrup
• Sparkling wine on the side

Shake and serve with a shot of fizz on the side.

🔗 Internal link: How to Drink a Pornstar Martini

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🙋 FAQs

What is the most popular classic cocktail?
The Old Fashioned and Margarita consistently rank among the most ordered cocktails worldwide.

Which cocktails are easiest to make at home?
The Gin & Tonic, Mojito, and Whisky Sour are beginner-friendly and require just a few ingredients.

What tools do I need for cocktails?
Start with a shaker, jigger, bar spoon, and strainer — enough for 90% of home recipes.

Can I make classic cocktails alcohol-free?
Yes! Use zero-proof spirits or juices. Try our Alcohol-Free Winter Warmers for ideas.

For more inspiration and advanced mixology techniques, explore Difford’s cocktail encyclopedia.

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