Cocktails are iterative. It’s not always obvious as they may have completely unrelated names. But they are. The more you get into mixology and working with cocktails, the more you find that some are similar to others. Perhaps one ingredient is replaced with something else and you have a new cocktail with a new name. It all makes sense after a while. Imagine if you replaced the spaghetti with penne in your spag bol and called it a milanese supremo. That’s the sort of thing going on in mixology!
It’s especially common to find classics have been fiddled with (in a nice way.) They’re the obvious place to start aren’t they because you know you have a great base drink? Take out one ingredient from a classic and replace it with something else that you like and that you think will work. All spirits are involved in these riffs on classics. Some of these variants have become classics themselves.
Gin based
The Negroni is a classic cocktail and a bartenders favourite. It combines gin, sweet vermouth and Campari. It is based on the older Americano which leaves out the gin but contains soda instead. So a lighter alternative.
Then leave out the gin again and add Prosecco to the vermouth & Campari and you now have a Sbagliato. The Italians like this as it now involves all Italian ingredients.
Leave out the vermouth and add grapefruit bitters and you now have a Death in Venice. Campari, the bitters and Prosecco. This doesn’t work well.
Change the Negroni’s base spirit from gin to bourbon and you have a Boulevardier.
Whisky based
The Manhattan is another great, well renown cocktail. It consists of rye whisky, sweet vermouth & bitters. Leave out the rye and replace with scotch whisky and you have a Rob Roy. Alternatively keep the scotch and sweet vermouth but leave out the bitters and instead add Benedictine and you have a Bobbie Burns.
Remember the Maine is a lovely cocktail. It’s similar to the Manhattan. Cherry Heering and Absinthe replace the angostura bitters.
Brandy based
The classic Sidecar is brandy, Cointreau and lemon juice. Swap out the brandy and replace with
Gin for a White Lady
Vodka for a Balalaika
Scotch for a Silent Third
Rum for an XYZ
The only other spirit is Tequila which if you replace the lemon juice with lime gives you a Margarita.
Or just add white rum to the Sidecar and you have a Between the Sheets.
The Maiden’s Prayer is gin, Cointreau, orange and lemon juice. So all you’ve done here is swap the gin for brandy and add some orange juice.
The Rolls Royce is brandy, Cointreau and orange juice.
Vodka based
A Black Russian contains Vodka and Kahlua. Add cream and you have a White Russian. Leave out the vodka though from the Black Russian and replace it with Tequila and you have the all-Mexican Brave Bull.
Our Cocktail Shaker Boys Black Jack (previously the Colonisation of the Dark World) is based on this, adding liquorice syrup to the Kahlua and vanilla vodka.
Taking the Vodka, Kahlua and adding Baileys to the Black Russian mix and you have a Mudslide. Simply replace the Kahlua with coffee and you have a Flat White Martini. Or add Amaretto to the Mudslide mix with cream and milk and you have a Screaming Org**m usually drunk as a shot.
And so it goes. Many variants on classics. Try some yourself and see how you get on. I do it all the time. Part of the fun of mixology is adapting classics and seeing if you can improve on them. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Whilst you may not improve on a classic you can often produce great alternatives – which give you and your guests more options.