It’s 5 o’clock somewhere! Luis Bunuel said, “If you were to ask me if I’d ever had the bad luck to miss my daily cocktail, I’d have to say that I doubt it; where certain things are concerned, I plan ahead.”
Here’s to planning!
My top 5 favorite cocktail recipes of all time. What’s yours?
5.) Mudslide — 8 to 12 cubes of ice crushed in a blender, 2 scoops Breyers chocolate ice cream, 1 scoop Breyers vanilla bean ice cream, 1 oz. vodka, 1 oz. Bailey’s, 1 oz. Kahlua, 1 oz. heavy cream, decorate glass with an artistic stream of chocolate syrup. This cocktail is the ultimate dessert. It is the infamous drink served up by my friend Matt Brady at our annual Super Bowl Party. I’m not sure where we found this recipe, Friday’s Restaurant, I think. Wow!
4.) Orange & Vanilla Caprioska — 2 oz. vanilla vodka, 1.5 oz. Cointreau, .75 oz simple syrup (to make simple syrup combine equal parts water and sugar, heat until liquified and clear, let cool,) 3 chunks of orange, muddle (mash until smooth) together. Discovered this delectable drink at the Beach House on Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
3.) Dirty Martini — 2 oz. favorite high quality vodka, 1/2 oz. olive juice. Gently coat cocktail glass with Sweet Vermouth. Shaker with ice until cold. Garnish with two olives. The classic martini. Discovered this recipe in the Denver International Airport. Yep, you guessed it. I hate to fly.
2.) French Martini — 3 oz. pineapple juice, 1.5 oz. of your favorite high quality vodka, 3/4 oz. Chambord. Shaker with ice until cold. Serve garnished with cherry. It is the perfect cocktail with sushi. Discovered this recipe at Virago Restaurant in Nashville.
1.) Maple Manhattan — 2 oz. Rye Whiskey, 3/4 oz. Sweet Vermouth, 1/4 oz. maple syrup, 2 dashes Angostura bitters, gently stir in a shaker of ice until cold. Serve up garnished with a maraschino cherry with a stem. This is definitely my favorite martini of all time. Smooth with a kick! Discovered this recipe at the Citizen club in Nashville.
I have many, many more cocktail recipes and I find it a little scary that I could write all these recipes from memory. Or maybe that just proves they really are my favs!
Question: What is YOUR favorite cocktail?
If you give the recipe, there is extra brownie points and cocktail hour will be four o’clock for you today!!
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67 responses to “My Top 5 Cocktails Of All Time—And How To Make Them”
@jodytodd and I won the 2010 Christmas Party First Place Martini prize with the Strawberry Balsamic martini recipe that we snagged off of this blog.
You can’t deny a winner. Cannot.
@Bill Todd, Ha!!! thanks, Bill! Glad to help!! Here is the link for those of you who want an extraordinary and very unique martini:
https://www.randyelrod.com/my-new-favorite-martini-of-all-time/
Randy these are fabulous!! I was just in Florida with my parents and their friends and they made fantastic mixed cocktails like these…So thankful for the recipes!! I love your blog!
@Lorrie Harden, Thanks, Lorrie!!!
I completely agree….the #5 mudslides are aaaaaamazing! Now next year let’s try the #1 Maple Manhattan at the superbowl party!
As for my end of the day drink, I am a simple man, just give me a Crown and coke or Crown and seven.
@Jimmy Williams, Nice, Jimmy. Let’s do it!! Next year, Maple Manhattans.
Lavender Mojito
Recipe : http://mealsathome.blogspot.com/2010/04/lavender-mojitos.html
First fell in love with mojitos in Japan… where they are often made with Shiso leaves :)
@Sarah Joy Albrecht, Thanks so much!! This sounds extraordinary. I LOVE lavender!!! Thanks, Sarah Joy!
I would love your Texas margarita recipe — that’s my fav! I need to introduce Brent and Tam to it!
@Alece, Yes! Here it is:
6 oz. frozen limeade
6 oz. Tequila
4 oz. beer
2 oz. orange juice
2 cups ice
Yum! Can’t wait to see what Tam & Brent think…Have fun!!
@Randy,
we had your Texas marg’z the other night. so good!
Are you sure you want to know? You might have a new obsession! It’s a pomegranate liquour http://pamaliqueur.com/home/index.php that is my new favorite splurge at the store. I really like it with champagne but I’ve had it with vodka, rum, and straight and it is awesome any way you take it!
The Pama cosmo is a staple at get-togethers with my girlfriends!
@Stephanie Tanner, Oh.My.Goodness. You are right. Trouble with a capital “T”. But I am buying some asap!! Thanks, Stephanie.
Champagne and Pama…or a long island iced tea if I’m not driving anywhere!
@Stephanie Tanner, Stephanie, What is Pama?
(sigh) aw, rats. Now I want Bushmills – keep working, Judy, keep working . . . (giggle)
@Judy McD, Ha!!! I have a bottle of Jameson about two feet from my desk….hmmmmmm…
i’ll have one of each, please. spread out over 5 nights, of course. or not.
my 3 favorite drinks at the moment are…
screewdriver – so simple.
mojito.
margarita. currently on the hunt for the perfect one tho.
@Tam, Tam, I like the…or not.
I do make a pretty mean margarita if I do say so myself. I have two different recipes. Ask Alece about the Texas Margarita that I do!
@Randy Elrod, oh, i will!!
@Tam, I lke to add a shot of amaretto to my margarita then rim the glass with sugar instead of salt…kind of a neat twist.
“Cocktail”? Randy, all any Irish-Catholic lass needs is a shot of good whiskey – and the access to a second shot, if desired.
And as to whether you need to dilute that heavenly beverage with water, well – I let my grandmother decide that for me. When I was little, my family and I would go to Ireland every few years to visit the relatives. While there once, I heard my 80 year old grandmother offered a whiskey – and they asked her if she wanted some water with it. She replied, “When I want water, I’ll drink water.”
Hee.
If whiskey neat is good enough for Delia McDonagh, it’s good enough for her granddaughter.
@Judy McD, That is an awesome story!!!!!!!!! I LOVE it!! I say cheers to that!! Thanks, Judy!
i’m not much of a mudslide girl, but i loooooooved the one matt made last time i was at your house. so good!
i think the “caprioska” one sounds amazing! might need to make a run to the liquor store…
@alece, Alece, They are SO good. And you will LOVE the Caprioska!!
You can usually find Turbinado sugar any place that sells organic foods. Most grocers do carry it though – in the baking aisle with the other sugars. It’s organic raw cane sugar and it’s a little on the crunchy side. It’s great on top of muffins and is a 1 for 1 substitute for granulated sugar. It doesn’t disolve as easy though so some people don’t like it. I love the richer taste to it.
@Deana, Yum!! Thanks, Deana!!
This is our house drink. How cool. — I serve it every time we have guests. I LOVE Cachaca — only variation is I use Turbinado sugar. Most excellent drink. I have some guests who like orange or pineapple juice added to it and that’s not too bad either. It is potent though.
@Deana, well that didn’t post right. — this was supposed to be a response to the cachaca comment above somewhere. LOL
@Deana, Yes, I agree, Deana, it is very potent. And where do you get Turbinado sugar??
I just wrote a post called “Bucket List of 111 Drinks your Must Try” and I am currently working my way through every one! So far, the French 75 is my favorite. But, in my younger days I loved my a mudslide!
Thanks everyone for sharing some recipes that I can try.
http://mslistologist.com/?p=5472
@Annette Renee White, Okay, Annette, your list alone was worth my writing this post!! What a great list! Thanks, and I will try the French 75. Any hints on preparation?
@Randy Elrod,
Here’s the recipe for a French 75:
1 1/2 oz gin
2 tsp superfine sugar
1 1/2 oz lemon juice
4 ozchilled Champagne
1 slice orange
1 maraschino cherry
In a shaker half-filled with ice cubes, combine the gin, sugar, and lemon juice. Shake well. Pour into a collins glass. Top with the champagne. Stir well and garnish with the orange slice and the cherry
Enjoy!
@Annette Renee White, Awesome!! Sounds incredible!! thanks!
Randy,
3:00!! SO you are in CDT and I am in PDT…. so since you made the decree in your timezone, I must honor it at your time in my time = 1:00!! LOL
@John, Yes!!!!!!
Randy,
I will share two of my favorites… old, classic cocktails that require a well stocked bar and usually a bartender with a subtle touch…
First, the Sazerac, originated in pre-Civil War New Orleans and may be the oldest known cocktail…
Ingredients: 3 oz rye whiskey, 3/4 oz simple syrup, Peychaud bitters to taste, absinthe or absinthe substitute lemon twist for garnish
Preparation:
Chill an old-fashioned glass by filling it with ice and letting it sit while preparing the rest of the drink. In a separate mixing glass, mix the simple syrup and Peychaud bitters together. Add the rye whiskey and ice to the bitters mixture and stir. Discard the ice in the chilled glass and rinse it with absinthe (or substitute) by pouring a small amount into the glass, swirling it around and discarding the liquid. Pour the whiskey mixture from the mixing glass into the old fashioned glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.
Ad number two, just recently introduced to by a friend, the Vieux Carre… another New Orleans originated cocktail from the 1930’s…
Ingredients: 1 oz rye whiskey, 1 oz Cognac, 1 oz sweet vermouth, dash Peychaud’s bitters
dash Angostura aromatic bitters, 1/2 oz Benedictine, lemon twist for garnish
Preparation:
Pour the whiskey, Cognac and vermouth into an old-fashioned glass half-filled with ice. Add the bitters. Add the Benedictine then stir four times with a silver spoon. Squeeze the lemon over the drink then drop it into the glass.
Enjoy!
@John, Thanks, John!! These are awesome!! Thanks! I hereby declare your happy hour today to be 3pm since you gave two recipes!!
Love them all, Randy!!…This is my new favorite~
The Stoli Doli
Ingredients
* 1 fresh Dole pineapple, cut into pieces
* 1 (750 milliliter) bottle Stolichanya vodka
Directions
1. Place the pineapple pieces into a large container, and pour the vodka over them. Cover, and refrigerate for 3 to 4 days. Strain out pineapple, and serve vodka over ice with a pineapple garnish.
This will be great to enjoy this Summer..Cheers!!
@Julie Kolb, Wow!!! Julie, that sounds incredible!! I will definitely try that asap!!
Okay, so you too are entitled to happy hour at 4pm today instead of 5!!!
Thanks!!
@Randy Elrod, YAY, really “happy” Thursday!!..haha
@Julie Kolb, Yeah, baby!!
It’s 1030 in the morning and you have me craving one of Matt’s mudslides. It’s gonna be a long day! :)
@Lindsey Nobles, Ha!!!! Sorry about that! Ah….not really!
The Caipirinha is a wonderful summertime drink that originated in Brazil, and uses cachaca, a sugar-cane derived syrup. It’s a wonderful, fresh alternative to a margarita:
2 limes, quartered
2 tsp. of granulated sugar
2 ounces of cachaca
Sprinkle the sugar over the limes and muddle them in a glass until the sugar is dissolved and the lime juice is released. Fill the cocktail glass with crushed ice. Add the cachaca. Shake or stir until it is all mixed.
Wonderful! It tastes like summer!
@Tom Eggebrecht, Tom, I LOVE Caipirinha’s!!! and i LOVE summer!!
Thanks for this recipe!! Hmmmm. I think I will have one in 6 hours or so….in anticipation of summer since it chilled back down here last night.
@Randy Elrod, Oh, by the way, Tom. cocktail hour is 4pm today for you!!! Thanks for the recipe!!
Yipee!
@Tom, Yeah, baby!!
French martini–that sounds excellent. Well, it did until you mentioned sushi. *shudder* :)
@Susan Wilkinson, Ah, come on, Susan!! Sushi is the food of the gods, isn’t it? :)
@Randy Elrod, Yes, with a very small 5pt font g. For me, sushi is something you eat once. When you’re very young and naive. To impress a reallllly good looking guy on a date. And then never again. Amen.
@Susan Wilkinson, Ha!!!!!!! You obviously have not been to Virago in Nashville. I need to turn you on to the “H bomb” roll there. Oh. My.
@Randy Elrod, I’ve only driven through Nashville, but I did wave. :)
H bomb? I thought we had a treaty or something that forbade those… :-P
@Susan Wilkinson, Ha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@Randy Elrod, Oh, by the way, do you like Maker’s Mark? If so, and you haven’t already, sign up to be an ambassador. They give nice gifts every Christmas. This year I got a very cool large round ice cube mold. Love it.
@Susan Wilkinson, Yes, I do and Yes, I will!!!
Love the great memories engendered by this list. The food and libations are great, but the camaderie is even greater!
@Rhonda Kemp, Yes, indeed. I was reflecting as I wrote this post that many of the sacramental memories surrounding these drinks are with you and David.
Thanks, Rhonda!!
So when does the bar open?
@Spence Smith, Ha!! It’s five o’clock somewhere…
Hmm .. is that what I saw some folks (we won’t mention who, right) at the Pig Pub in Franklin downing?
Randy, next time we’re together in person, remind me to tell you my “peach brandy” story – good, pure moonshine. I have to tell it in person – typing can’t convey the animation and “vocal effects” needed. Maybe in … “OCTOBER” now.
One of my favorite memories of re:create 11. I think.
@Trey Chandler, Okay, so I suppose i could name one— hmmmm, Trey!
@Fred McKinnon, Fred,
I can’t wait to hear that story!! And yes, indeed, what you saw certain people who will remain nameless downing was indeed Irish Car Bombs.
My good ole’ boy Redneck upbringing (yes, I can skin a buck and run a trot line) would say my fave cocktail is a good Bud Light in a frosted mug. HAHA. Seriously.
@Fred McKinnon, Ha!!!!! I LOVE it!! Fred, you should try an Irish Car Bomb. That might be good middle ground for you!!