5 famous cocktail

You can drink cocktails all the year long. Today, xtraWine introduces you to 5 famous cocktails.

Amaze your guests with these delightful mix:

1. Alexander
2. Bellini
3. Bloody Mary
4. Daiquiri Hemingway
5. Vesper

Alexander

Origin

There are two versions of this story: the first say its name recalls the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great. The second version is related to the marriage between Princess Mary and Count Henry Lascelles in London in 1922. Henry McElhone created this cocktail as a tribute to the bride’s pure incarnate.

Ingredients

• 3 cl cognac
• 3 cl dark crème de cacao
• 3 cl fresh cream

Preparation

1. Pour all ingredients into an ice-filled shaker
2. Shake well
3. Strain into a chilled coupe glass
4. Grate a little nutmeg on the surface

Some prefer decorating the Alexander with cocoa.

Bellini

Origin

First crafted in 1950 at Harry’s Bar in Venice for the exhibition of the painter Giovanni Battista Bellini, known as Gianbellino.

The cocktail gained immense popularity and was reintroduced in spring with strawberries instead of peaches for Rossini.

Harry’s Bar devised an autumnal formula using strawberry grape juice (left to settle until clarified).

Ingredients

• 10 cl brut sparkling wine
• 5 cl white peach nectar

Preparation

1. Pour peach nectar into a chilled flute
2. Slowly add sparkling wine

Instead of peach, you can use pomegranate juice, seeds processed in a juicer. The juice stores well in the freezer in ice cube bags.

Bloody Mary

Origin

Dedicated to Queen Mary I Tudor, known as the “Bloody” for fiercely combating religious heresies.

The cocktail originated in Paris in 1920 at Harry’s New York Bar.

Ingredients

• 4.5 cl vodka
• 9 cl tomato juice
• 1.5 cl lemon juice
• 2 or 3 drops Worcestershire sauce
• Tabasco to taste
• Celery salt to taste
• Pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Put Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, salt, and pepper in a highball glass
2. Add ice cubes, tomato juice, and vodka
3. Mix gently
4. Garnish with celery and a lemon slice

Pair this cocktail with raw vegetable crudités or gazpacho.

Daiquiri Hemingway

Origin

Daiquiri, born by chance, quickly became famous. One version is the Daiquiri Hemingway or Papa Doble.

During his time in Cuba, Ernest Hemingway tried the Daiquiri at Floridita in Havana and said, “It’s good, but I prefer it without sugar and double rum.” Thus, Constantino Ribalaigua – Floridita’s bartender – made the modification, creating this new cocktail.

Ingredients

• 6 cl white rum
• 4 cl grapefruit juice
• 1.5 cl maraschino
• 1.5 cl lime juice

Preparation

1. Pour all ingredients into an ice-filled shaker
2. Shake well
3. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass

Pair this cocktail with paella, chicken curry, or fried vegetables.

Vesper

Origin

In 1953, English writer Ian Fleming wrote Casino Royale, the first novel featuring James Bond.

Notoriously, in the novel, 007 explains to the bartender how to prepare this cocktail. In 1967, the novel hit the big screen with David Niven portraying James Bond.

Ingredients

• 6 cl gin
• 1.5 cl vodka
• 0.75 cl Lillet Blonde
• Lemon zest to taste

Preparation

1. Shake the ingredients in an ice-filled shaker
2. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass
3. Garnish with a lemon zest

Pair this cocktail with hearty and substantial finger foods.

The list of world famous cocktails could be even loger. Just a final suggestion: if you like Negroni, on the xtraWine blog, you can find the recipe for the Negroni Sbagliato.