We’ve all been spending a little more time at home recently, what with COVID-19, working from home, the bars being closed...and not to mention the nights drawing in with winter on the horizon. But staying at home doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy a great quality cocktail! Sometimes after a long, stressful day, you just want to unwind and sip on a cool drink of something delicious, and that’s fine. Creating a great cocktail at home is an impressive skill to have and can make you the life of the party. Plus, whipping up a fresh cocktail for someone special in your life will show them how much you appreciate them, even if that person is you! Learning to make cocktails at home doesn’t have to be difficult, and you may already have most of the basics you need. Here are five great tips for fabulous homemade cocktails from professional bartender and Liquid Therapist Ciara Arrington of the Houston-based cocktail company Never Drnk Alone:
1) Start out with fresh ingredients Delicious cocktails start with fresh ingredients. If you want to make something really special, spend a little extra effort and use fresh lemon juice instead of bottled, make up a simple flavored sugar syrup instead of grabbing one off the shelf, and use real herbs instead of the packets of flavor mix from the grocery store. “One of the things that I teach and that I love to introduce people to is using fresh ingredients. I always use fresh juices, fresh herbs, fresh fruit... I do not like using anything fake. I still like to be mindful of what I’m putting into my body, regardless of if it’s in an alcoholic drink” said Ciara.
2) Use the same base ingredients in different ways Cocktail ingredients lists can be long and sometimes the costs add up. Ciara suggests starting out with a group of basic ingredients and working with those ingredients to see how many different drinks you can make from them. When picking your base ingredients, choose one or two spirits you love, plus a couple of different flavor groups such as a citrus flavor, a sweeter note and something aromatic. You can also make a simple sugar syrup by combining equal parts of water and sugar in a pan and bringing the mixture to a boil, stirring from time to time. Once the mixture is boiled, leave it to cool and then you have your sugar syrup. You can also add other flavors to this syrup to spice it up a little, such as mint or lavender, or replace the sugar by another sweet ingredient such as honey or agave. This syrup should keep well in the fridge and you can use it to add a twist to a classic cocktail recipe.
3) Learn some basic cocktail-making techniques If you can master a cocktail of basic cocktail-making techniques, you can use it over and over again to make different drinks. Ciara recommends beginning with a technique such as layering, or adding different ingredients in layers without mixing them, which creates a beautiful cocktail. If you want to learn how to make a great cocktail, Ciara offers virtual cocktail making classes where you can watch her demonstrate some bartender techniques.
4) Substitute equipment that you don’t have When you see a professional bartender at work, they might be grabbing all kinds of equipment to whip up your drink. However, if you’re ready to get a little creative in the kitchen, you’d be surprised at what you can make with the equipment you already have. You don’t need a cocktail shaker if you have a mason jar with a lid, instead of a jigger you can grab a one ounce shot glass or measuring cups and use a wooden spoon instead of a muddler. “You have to use what you have, and that’s something that I love teaching people”, said Ciara. “You can still make a great cocktail without all the gidgets and gadgets, if you know what to substitute them for”.
5) Get into garnishes Sometimes all it takes to make a beautiful, brilliant cocktail is a little garnish at the end. Garnishes can elevate a basic drink into something fabulous, and it’ll look great on your Instagram feed too. You could finish off your cocktail with a garnish of fresh herbs, a little lemon peel, a dusting of ground spices or cocoa powder... this is where your creativity can come out to play and you could elevate a simple cocktail into a special moment. Don’t forget to subscribe to The Classi Ladi Corner podcast so that you can get more episodes of fun, inspiring content to empower you to live your best life!.
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