Cocktail Maker's Guide

What do you need to make the perfect cocktail?

Cocktail Recipes

The world’s best cocktail recipes are here!

Fun Cocktails

Having a party? Try our fun cocktails.

Non-Alcoholic Cocktails

Fancy a night off..?! Try a mocktail.

Shooters

Short drinks to get the party started.

Noah’s Ark recipe
Monday, 3 Aug, 2009 – 22:55 | 110 Comments
Noah’s Ark recipe

The Noah’s Ark is very much a DIY cocktail. The beauty of this cocktail is that it can be made with whatever ingredients you have around the house…whisky, gin, antifreeze, chipboard…

Cocktail Recipes are here!
Saturday, 1 Aug, 2009 – 14:08 | 6 Comments
Cocktail Recipes are here!

Great Cocktail Recipes – Enjoy!
Cocktails are great fun – and it needn’t be difficult to make the perfect drink of your choice.
If you are looking for cocktail recipes, non alcoholic cocktail recipes, shooters or party …

Classic Champagne Cocktail recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 55 Comments
Classic Champagne Cocktail recipe

This is the simplest of all champagne cocktail recipes, and a favourite around the world. You don’t need any special tools to make this cocktail.

Brandy Alexander recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 74 Comments
Brandy Alexander recipe

The Brandy Alexander is a popular after-dinner cocktail. Also great served on ice cream.

Bloody Mary recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 150 Comments
Bloody Mary recipe

My girlfriend is called Mary. This is entirely unrelated to the fact that a perfect Bloody Mary is actually very hard to perfect. A traditional Bloody Mary is made up of a series of very …

Tequila Slammer recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 149 Comments
Tequila Slammer recipe

The Tequila Slammer is a very short cocktail, served in a shot glass. It has the words ‘tequila’ and ’slam’ in the name, so it’s a safe bet that it is going to be good.

Margarita recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 137 Comments
Margarita recipe

The Margarita is one of the world’s most popular cocktails. It was supposedly invented when a bartender was asked to make a drink he had not heard of before – so he improvised. If that …

Pina Colada recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Pina Colada recipe

The Pina Colada is shrouded in mystery; no-one really seems to know its origins. It was most likely first made  in a bar in Puerto Rico, during the 1950s. It is now known as the …

Mai Tai recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 6 Comments
Mai Tai recipe

The Mai Tai can be made with a whole range of different ingredients; your choice is very much up to personal taste. This Mai Tai recipe uses our favourite combination.

Daiquiri recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 113 Comments
Daiquiri recipe

The Daiquiri is a cocktail staple, and has been enjoyed in Cuba for decades. It is a classic holiday drink.

Pink Gin recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Pink Gin recipe

Pink Gin is a quintessentially English drink. Popularised in the Navy and sometimes known as Gin and Bitters, it is simple and refreshing.

Tom Collins recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Tom Collins recipe

The Tom Collins is a classic summer drink. One of the simplest cocktails imaginable, it’s easy to make and even easier to enjoy.

Black Velvet recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Black Velvet recipe

The Black Velvet is a simple, long drink. It is stout in every sense of the word, and probably only suitable for those with a strong stomach.

Kir Royale recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Kir Royale recipe

The Kir Royale, like many cocktails, has its origins shrouded in legend. Supposedly, Kir was the name of the priest of a French town which, during the war, had its wine supplies hijacked by German …

Bellini cocktail recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Bellini cocktail recipe

The Bellini is amongst the classic Italian cocktails. It was supposedly first made as a homage to the orange glow of a painting by Giovanni Bellini, an Italian painter – and if a story like …

Mint Julep recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Mint Julep recipe

The Mint Julep is virtually synonymous with America’s Deep South – and, in particular, the Kentucky Derby. It is a very refreshing summer drink.

Rusty Nail recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Rusty Nail recipe

The Rusty Nail is one of the simplest cocktails imaginable. No prizes for guessing where it gets its name from.

Manhattan recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Manhattan recipe

The Manhattan is amongst your humble scribe’s favourite cocktails. Manhattans are actually very easy to make, and you can be pretty sure that you will get a good drink wherever you order one.

Vodka Martini recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | One Comment
Vodka Martini recipe

The vodka martini is a variation on the classic martini. This drink has been popularised almost entirely by James Bond – but you can have yours shaken or stirred.

Moscow Mule recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Moscow Mule recipe

The Moscow Mule is a classic 1940s cocktail, often credited with some of the later success enjoyed by Smirnoff – with which the drink was originally mixed.

Screaming Orgasm recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Screaming Orgasm recipe

Yes, this is a recipe for a Screaming Orgasm. No, we don’t think it is possible to talk about this drink without some sort of joke. Maybe try a Sex on the Beach first. Also, …

White Russian recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
White Russian recipe

The White Russian is a sicklier variation on the Black Russian. Not something that I could personally drink much of, but nice in the winter.

Black Russian recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | One Comment
Black Russian recipe

The Black Russian is a sweet cocktail, apparently popularised during the Cold War. The ‘Russian’ of the title refers to the vodka.

Screwdriver recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | No Comment
Screwdriver recipe

The Screwdriver has become the basis for many other cocktails, including the Harvey Wallbanger. Try it with different juices if you are looking for inspiration.

Harvey Wallbanger recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | One Comment
Harvey Wallbanger recipe

The Harvey Wallbanger has a ridiculously lame story regarding its name. Supposedly a surfer called Harvey walked into a bar (this isn’t a joke) having lost a surfing competition. He ordered drink after drink, and …

Martini recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:22 | 2 Comments
Martini recipe

The Martini is arguably the world’s best-loved cocktail. Probably taking its name from a popular vermouth brand, it is a very drinkable cocktail – and one that is the subject of endless variation.

Essential equipment for cocktail making
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Essential equipment for cocktail making

One of the great things about cocktail making is that it is always possible to improvise. For example, if you are missing a cocktail shaker you can use a jam jar with a lid.
That said, …

Apocalypse Now recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Apocalypse Now recipe

The clue to the potency of this drink should be in the title, really. It is a mixture of flavours that shouldn’t work together – and they don’t, actually, but they are likely to get …

Flaming Lamborghini recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Flaming Lamborghini recipe

The Flaming Lamborghini is half drink, half practical joke. It only really works if you are making it for someone else. All will become clear…

Flatliner recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | One Comment
Flatliner recipe

The Flatliner is, as the name would suggest, not the right drink if you are looking for a quiet night in. It is, however, very fun.

Brain Haemorrhage Cocktail Recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Brain Haemorrhage Cocktail Recipe

The Brain Haemorrhage is the perfect Halloween cocktail. It is also suitable for scaring small children – but not for offering to small children, obviously.

B52 recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | One Comment
B52 recipe

The B52 is one of the most popular shooters. Come on – any drink named after a bomber plane is going to be enjoyable, no?

Shark Bite recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | One Comment
Shark Bite recipe

The Shark Bite is a fruity, summery drink ideal for a day by the pool. Or in the garden, if you don’t have a pool. Or sitting by the window if you don’t have a …

Virgin Mary recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Virgin Mary recipe

The Virgin Mary is a non-alcoholic take on the classic Bloody Mary recipe.

Toothless Shark recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Toothless Shark recipe

The Toothless Shark is a non-alcoholic take on the Shark Bite recipe.

Virgin Margarita recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Virgin Margarita recipe

A non-alcoholic take on the classic Margarita recipe.

Safe Sex recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:21 | No Comment
Safe Sex recipe

A non-alcoholic take on the classic Sex on the Beach recipe.

Flaming B52 recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 17:17 | No Comment
Flaming B52 recipe

The Flaming B52 is a slightly more dangerous take on the regular B52 recipe.

Cosmopolitan recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 16:54 | No Comment
Cosmopolitan recipe

The Cosmopolitan has been introduced to a whole new generation through the joys of ‘Sex and the City’. Despite this (or perhaps because of it) it is still seen as a ‘girly’ drink. I ordered …

Blue Lagoon recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 12:37 | No Comment
Blue Lagoon recipe

As ‘tropical’ cocktails go, they don’t get much better than the Blue Lagoon. If you fancy something less fizzy, try swapping the lemonade with pineapple juice.

Cranberry Vodka Martini recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 11:59 | No Comment
Cranberry Vodka Martini recipe

The cranberry vodka martini is a refreshing take on the vodka martini – which is itself a bastardisation of the classic martini. Purists will tell you it isn’t a martini. You can tell them it …

Sex on the Beach recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 10:41 | 2 Comments
Sex on the Beach recipe

Sex on the Beach is a cocktail, not a recommended activity. Actual sex on the beach would be highly uncomfortable, I would imagine. You would get lots of sand in your….toes.

Tequila Sunrise recipe
Tuesday, 28 Jul, 2009 – 9:24 | No Comment
Tequila Sunrise recipe

The Tequila Sunrise is still one of the most exciting, romantic drinks around. It originated in Arizona in the 1930s, and has since become a permanent fixture at bars around the world.

Mojito recipe
Monday, 27 Jul, 2009 – 15:04 | No Comment
Mojito recipe

The Mojito was, famously, Ernest Hemingway’s favourite cocktail. A refreshing summer drink, it is a lovely mixture of sweet and bitter.

Buck’s Fizz recipe
Monday, 27 Jul, 2009 – 12:24 | No Comment
Buck’s Fizz recipe

The Buck’s Fizz is amongst the simplest drinks imaginable – or, at least, the version that we all know is. In fact, a true Buck’s Fizz is only served in London’s Buck’s club and contains …

B&B – Brandy and Benedictine recipe
Wednesday, 22 Jul, 2009 – 15:24 | No Comment
B&B – Brandy and Benedictine recipe

This is a sweet cocktail that goes well as a dessert topping. It first appeared in the 21 Club in New York, during the 1950s.

Strawberry Daiquiri recipe
Sunday, 3 Aug, 2008 – 14:20 | No Comment
Strawberry Daiquiri recipe

The Strawberry Daiquiri is a fun take on the classic Daiquiri recipe.

Between the Sheets recipe
Monday, 28 Jul, 2008 – 17:22 | No Comment
Between the Sheets recipe

Between the Sheets was a popular drink during the 1930s, when it was invented as a summer alternative to the sidecar.

Brandy Sidecar recipe
Monday, 28 Jul, 2008 – 17:22 | One Comment
Brandy Sidecar recipe

The sidecar is a classic cocktail, first invented during the First World War. You should make sure to use cognac rather than regular brandy for the best results.

Long Island Ice Tea recipe
Monday, 28 Jul, 2008 – 17:22 | No Comment
Long Island Ice Tea recipe

The Long Island Ice Tea (or Long Island Iced Tea, depending on your spelling) is a notoriously alcoholic cocktail. Not for the faint of heart!