spirits

This sweet 50/50 martini was created in the early 1900s by Ada Coleman, the head bartender at the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel in London. It combines equal parts gin and sweet vermouth, finished with a splash of the bittersweet Italian amaro Fernet-Branca. Stick with the original recipe and use Fernet-Branca, or substitute another fernet. The amount you deploy depends on both individual taste and the intensity of the fernet used, so add it slowly, and as you like.

Hanky Panky

sweet vermouth

fernet,

orange peel,

Place a coupe or Nick and Nora glass in the freezer to chill for at least 15 minutes and up to an hour. (Alternatively, fill the coupe with ice and water, stir for 30 seconds, pour out the ice and water, and pour the finished drink into the now-chilled glass.)

In a cocktail shaker or mixing glass filled with ice, combine the gin, vermouth and fernet. Stir until very cold, about 30 seconds, then strain into the chilled cocktail glass. Hold the orange peel by its long edges, skin facing down into the glass. Pinch the peel to express the citrus oils into the glass and garnish with the orange peel.

Go big or go home with this 20 gallon moonshine recipe!&amp;nbsp;

Delicious 20 Gallon Moonshine Recipe

gallons of malt grains (rye, barley,

bread yeast

sugar

gallons warm water

In a fermentation chamber, combine approximately 10 pounds of sugar with 2-4 gallons of malt grain. Add warm water until the sugar dissolves - the water should be warm enough to dissolve the sugar but not hot enough that it kills the yeast.

Stir the mixture as the sugar dissolves. Continue stirring as you add the remaining grains, sugar, and water. Keep stirring until all sugar dissolves.

Shake or pour between two vessels to areate your mixture.

Add an airtight lid with airlock and ferment for about two weeks

Distill as normal.

Looking for a special homemade gift for friends &amp; neighbors? Make this super easy Slow Cooker Salted Caramel Moonshine that’s perfect for holiday sipping.

Slow Cooker Salted Caramel Moonshine

water

brown sugar (- packed)

salted caramel flavored syrup

tsp vanilla extract

Everclear

caramel vodka

Combine water, brown sugar, flavored syrup &amp; vanilla extract in the slow cooker &amp; whisk well.

Cover &amp; cook on high 90 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove insert from the cooker, uncover &amp; allow to cool to room temperature.

Once cooled, stir in Everclear &amp; vodka.

Transfer to mason jars or bottles.

Store in a cool, dark place.

These easy summer cocktails use a homemade strawberry and thyme simple syrup!

Strawberry Thyme Cocktails

strawberries,

thyme

simple syrup (recipe above)

lime juice

tequila (you can also use vodka

Plenty of ice (at least 3 cups)

fresh strawberries, for garnish (optional)

thyme,

Stir sugar, water, strawberries, and thyme together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Bring to a low simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for 10-15 minutes until sugar has dissolved and strawberries have softened. The syrup should turn a bright, rich pink color as the strawberries begin to break down. 

Remove syrup from heat and let cool for 20-30 minutes, then strain to remove all fruit and herbs. (Pro tip: Reserve the leftover strawberries for smoothies!) 

Use cooled syrup immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Note: This recipe makes enough simple syrup for several cocktails; use what you need for your drinks today and save the rest in the fridge for later!

For the simple syrup:

Add simple syrup, lime juice, and tequila (or your spirit of choice) to a large cocktail shaker. Shake over ice until chilled, then pour into cocktail glasses filled with ice. 

Garnish drinks with fresh strawberries and a sprig of thyme (optional) and serve immediately.

For the cocktails:

I love how light and refreshing this cocktail is! My new go-to drink!

This strawberry margarita looks so refreshing! Thyme and strawberry combination is very flavorful.

We've been enjoying a cocktail hour for the holidays this year and these were a total hit! I already love traditional margaritas and having this twist on the classic was super fun. Made them with Mezcal and loved every second of them. :)

Thyme in cocktails will always get my vote. So refreshing and the smell from the thyme makes it even more delicious.

This was such a unique and unexpected cocktail recipe that does not disappoint! Sweet and savory with the perfect amount of kick!

Bridging Tiki and Italian aperitivo cultures, the Jungle Bird is a classic tropical cocktail made with rum, pineapple juice, Campari and lime.

Jungle Bird Cocktail

Ice cubes ice cube

dark rum, preferably Cruzan Black Strap

pineapple juice, preferably fresh

Campari

lime juice (from 1 lime)

simple syrup

Pineapple wedge or leaves, for garnish (optional)

Make the simple syrup: In a small (1-to-2-quart) pot over medium-high heat, combine the sugar and water, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, let cool until warm, then transfer to a lidded jar or bottle, and refrigerate until completely chilled, about 1 hour. You should have about 1 1/2 cups.

Make the drink: Fill a rocks glass with ice cubes (or one large cube) and set aside. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, and add the rum, pineapple juice, Campari, lime juice and simple syrup. Seal the shaker, and shake vigorously to chill and dilute, about 15 seconds. Strain into the prepared glass, garnish with the pineapple wedge or leaves, if desired, and serve.

This take on the classic drink uses a combination of sweet and dry vermouths in the standard gin-vermouth-red bitter formula, adding depth and character. The vermouths are paired with the spirit of your choice for an adaptable drink that puts whatever bottles you prefer or have on hand to work. If you're not a fan of the traditional gin, rum, tequila or bourbon or rye whiskeys are all great here.

Any-Spirit Negroni

red bitter liqueur,

dry vermouth

orange

NYT Cooking

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Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Judy Kim.

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Fill a mixing glass with ice, and add the spirit, red bitter, sweet vermouth and dry vermouth. Stir for 30 seconds, then strain into an ice-filled lowball glass. Garnish with the citrus peel.

I love this with mezcal, but I use 1 oz blanco vermouth instead of the sweet/dry combo suggested here.

We have made gin versions using Gran Classico instead of Campari. Just a bit less bitter with a touch of sweet and excellent color.

A ‘Negroni’ without Campari is not a Negroni.

This is basically a ‘perfect’ Negroni or Boulevardier. I prefer bourbon. I would also add 2 shakes of orange bitters to counter the bitterness of Campari.

I've used rum, tequila, rye....all good.  Thinking brandy next.

A Negroni is: 
Gin. Campari. Sweet Vermouth. Orange peel garnish.
1 oz each. Stirred. No substitutions. 
Anything added or subbed is a different drink.
Cmon NYT.

Mezcal is my go to replacement for gin in my negroni.  If you have it, try mezcal, cynar and vermouth with a few dashes of mole bitters.  Heaven in a glass.

Try this with a smoky mezcal. I often add a float of Cynar to give it balance and umami.

I don't normally go much for gin drinks, but the other day I made a modified negroni that was quite delightful.   I poured equal quantities of Hendricks Gin, Campari, and Rustica Antica sweet vermouth in a tall glass of ice, then topped it off with about another part of sparkling mineral water, stirred, and garnished with a twist of orange peel.  The Antica vermouth added a nice complexity, and the 1 part sparkling water diluted the drink so it was more of a cooler and less of a strong cocktail.

I had some Winter Jack -- apple jack whiskey -- that I had used instead of applejack in making rye bread. It didn't work well. 

I used it as the spirt in this drink and it worked out superbly. Given the acidity of the Winter Jack, I used all sweet vermouth.

Made these over the warm weekend with an added twist: equal parts gin, Campari and fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice. All the guests had seconds (and thirds!). Delightfully refreshing without the sweet cloy of sugary vermouth.

I made it too using this recipe and it was great. Thank for the tip.

I still dream about a mezcal negroni I had in New York right before lockdown and made one (too?) often at home over the course of the last 14 months.

I recently had a Negroni at a restaurant in Asheville, NC. According to the menu, the recipe included unspecified amounts of the usual gin, Compari and sweet vermouth, but added vin santo. I tried this at home, but substituted 1/2 oz of very fine dry sherry for the vin santo, which I didn't have on hand. I also decreased the sweet vermouth and increased the Campari (I like the bitter flavor). Wonderful combo!

I prefer 2oz of the spirit of choice.  Never tried with dry vermouth, only 1oz of the sweet.

Can be very delicious with a robust dark rum, like El Dorado 12 year old

Try this with Luxardo Blanco in place of the Compari, and white lillet in place of the sweet vermouth for a negroni blanco.

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Hanky Panky

Delicious 20 Gallon Moonshine Recip...

Slow Cooker Salted Caramel Moonshin...

Strawberry Thyme Cocktails

Jungle Bird Cocktail

Any-Spirit Negroni

Top 6 spirits recipes from across the web

The most viewed spirits recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Hanky Panky

Delicious 20 Gallon Moonshine Recip...

Slow Cooker Salted Caramel Moonshin...

Strawberry Thyme Cocktails

Jungle Bird Cocktail

Any-Spirit Negroni

The most viewed spirits recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine