History of Mixed Drinks

 

The first written reference of a cocktail was in 1806 in an American newspaper, stating that “a Cocktail is a stimulating liquor composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters - it is vulgarly called a bittered sling …”

The origins of the word cocktail are shrouded in uncertainty. There are numerous stories making claims to where “cocktail” originated, a few of which are published below:
 

Believed to be the most valid by many experts is the old Mexican story of Xoc-tl (also referred to as Coctel), the daughter of a Mexican king. Whenever visited by American generals, Xoc-tl would serve the drinks to the men who in return honoured her through naming the drinks “cocktails”, the closest pronunciation they could achieve to her name.

Another story, originating in England, involves horses with mixed blood.  The tails of these horses would be docked and termed “cocktailed horses”. The resemblance of the “mixed blood”, to “mixed drinks” backs up this claim.

Search the cocktails
 
 

Furthermore, another Mexican tale, consists of English sailors entering a Mexican tavern and being served mixed drinks with a long, slender root of a plant which acted as a stirrer. This "stirrer" was called a "Cola de Gallo" due to its shape, which translates to a "Cock's Tail" in English. Subsequent travelling of these men spread the word from the UK to America and thus further afield to the whole world.

Bitters came along in 1800s and up to date is one of the most important developments to the world of mixed drinks, if bitters had not come along it is likely we would still be drinking punches and slings today.

Early examples of the family "cocktail" were the Old Fashioned, the Manhattan and the Martinez, which is the forerunner of the modern Dry Martini.

 

Families of Mixed Drinks

The word cocktail is can be seen on menus worldwide and is used as a generalisation for ‘mixed drinks’. In fact the cocktail is just one category of mixed drink as you will see from the categories below.

All mixed drinks known today can be divided into different families and many mixologists support the theory that they can be divided into just seven families:
 

The Punch


Sweet, sour, strong, weak and spice (optional)
 

The Milk Punch


The same as the Punch adding cream, or eggs and often garnished with nutmeg
 

The Sling


Spirit of any kind , sugar and water often garnished with peel or nutmeg
 

The Cocktail


Spirit of any kind, sugar, water and bitters
 

The Sour


sweet, sour, strong
 

The Cobbler


Spirits, liqueurs, wine and fruits
 

The Highball


Spirit & mixer with a little a bit of citrus and topped with soda or ginger ale

 

Christos’s Cocktail Tip

To make your own cocktail recipes follow this fundamental rule and you can’t go wrong:

Sweet: is your sugar
Sour: is your lemon, lime, citric juice
Strong: is your alcohol
Weak: is your fruit juice


(Descending in volume ratio 1:2:4:8)
 

So using any combination of ingredients you want, start with this:

12.5 ml of sugar (2 spoons)
25 ml juice of a whole lime or lemon (sour)
50 ml of alcohol (strong)
100 ml of weak (fruit juice)
 

One classic cocktail that anyone can make at home is the Tom Collins:

12.5 ml of sugar syrup or 2 spoons of sugar
25 ml of fresh lemon juice (or the juice of one lemon)
50 ml of Penderyn Madeira (the Peated finish also works well)
100 ml of soda water

Shake first three ingredients with ice, strain into a highball glass filled with ice, top with 100 ml of soda water. Garnish with a slice of lemon and a cherry.

Enjoy!!!