Bar Basics · Classics
Six classic cocktails with standard, balanced specs: the dry martini, Manhattan, whiskey sour, sidecar, mai tai, and Boulevardier, plus a zero-proof version of each that respects the original.
Classic cocktails are classics because they work: a handful of ingredients in proportions bartenders have refined for a century. These six use standard, widely accepted specs, and they teach the two core techniques, stirring and shaking. Each has a zero-proof version that respects the original’s structure (tap 🌿 Mocktails at the top). For the other essentials, see the old fashioned, the margarita, and the Negroni.
Gin and dry vermouth at 5 : 1, stirred with lots of ice and served in a frozen glass with a lemon twist or an olive. It’s the purest test of a gin, and of how cold you can get a drink.
Stir, don’t shake: shaking clouds it with tiny ice shards and bubbles. Thirty seconds of stirring gets it cold and silky.
Cocktail recipeZero-proof recipe
Gin and dry vermouth, 5 : 1, stirred ice-cold.
Garnish: Lemon twist or olive
Garnish: Lemon twist or olive
How the swap works: The martini is almost pure spirit, so this is one drink where a non-alcoholic gin alternative really helps (most are under 0.5% ABV). Verjus plays dry vermouth's wine role. No bottle? Try our Juniper Rosemary Tonic instead.
Enjoy responsibly, of legal drinking age only ·Zero-proof twin ·
Rye whiskey and sweet vermouth, 2 : 1, with two dashes of aromatic bitters, stirred and served up with a good brandied cherry. It’s rich, spicy, and warming.
Cocktail recipeZero-proof recipe
Rye, sweet vermouth, and aromatic bitters, 2 : 1.
Garnish: Brandied cocktail cherry
Garnish: Brandied cocktail cherry
How the swap works: Black tea stands in for rye's tannic spine; pomegranate and a little demerara rebuild sweet vermouth's dark, fruity richness.
Enjoy responsibly, of legal drinking age only ·Zero-proof twin ·
The template for a thousand drinks: spirit, lemon, sugar. With a pasteurized egg white or aquafaba and a proper dry shake, it gets a thick, silky foam, finished with a few drops of bitters.
Cocktail recipeZero-proof recipe
Bourbon, lemon, and sugar, with an optional silky foam.
Garnish: Drops of aromatic bitters on the foam, or a cherry and orange
Garnish: Drops of aromatic bitters on the foam, or a cherry and orange
How the swap works: A little smoky lapsang souchong in the black tea suggests bourbon's charred barrel; the ratios stay identical to the original.
Enjoy responsibly, of legal drinking age only ·Zero-proof twin ·
A Jazz Age classic: cognac, orange liqueur, and lemon, shaken and served with a half sugar rim. It’s the brandy version of the sour, and it’s elegant and bright.
Cocktail recipeZero-proof recipe
Cognac, orange liqueur, and lemon with a sugared rim.
Garnish: Half sugar rim, orange twist
Garnish: Half sugar rim, orange twist
How the swap works: Cognac is distilled from wine, so white grape juice plus a splash of tea recreates its fruit and oak; orange juice stands in for the liqueur.
Enjoy responsibly, of legal drinking age only ·Zero-proof twin ·
The real 1944 Mai Tai has no pineapple juice and no grenadine. It’s aged rum, fresh lime, orange liqueur, and orgeat, shaken with crushed ice and topped with a mint sprig and the spent lime shell.
Orgeat is an almond syrup with a touch of orange-flower water, and it’s what makes the drink. Note that it contains nuts.
Cocktail recipeZero-proof recipe
Aged rum, lime, orange liqueur, and orgeat. No pineapple juice.
Garnish: Mint sprig, spent lime shell
Garnish: Mint sprig, spent lime shell
How the swap works: Black tea gives body, orange juice replaces the liqueur, and a bit more orgeat carries the almond richness that defines a mai tai. Contains nuts.
Enjoy responsibly, of legal drinking age only ·Zero-proof twin ·
A Negroni made with bourbon instead of gin, and a little more of it. It’s rounder, richer, and warmer, perfect for autumn and winter.
Cocktail recipeZero-proof recipe
Bourbon, red bitter, and sweet vermouth, stirred.
Garnish: Orange peel
Garnish: Orange peel
How the swap works: More tea than in our Nogroni gives it the heavier, whiskey-like body that makes a Boulevardier; a spoon of demerara adds bourbon's caramel note.
Enjoy responsibly, of legal drinking age only ·Zero-proof twin ·
For stirred drinks, you need a mixing glass, a long bar spoon, and a julep strainer. For shaken drinks, a two-piece tin and a Hawthorne strainer. For everything, a jigger.
Keep your vermouth in the fridge. It’s wine, and an opened bottle left on the shelf for months is the most common reason homemade Manhattans taste flat.
Every classic has a zero-proof twin here, built on the same structure, with tea, verjus, or a non-alcoholic spirit in place of the base.
Start simpler with easy cocktail recipes, or learn the building blocks in simple syrup recipes.
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The martini, Manhattan, old fashioned, daiquiri, margarita, Negroni, whiskey sour, and mai tai are the core. Learn them and you understand how almost every other cocktail is built.
The old fashioned →Stir drinks made only of spirits, vermouths, and bitters (martini, Manhattan, Boulevardier); they should be silky and clear. Shake anything with citrus, cream, or egg (sour, sidecar, mai tai) to aerate and blend.
Our standard dry martini is 5 : 1 gin to dry vermouth. A 'wet' martini is 2 : 1 or 3 : 1; 'extra dry' is just a rinse of vermouth. Always stir, and always use a frozen glass.
About 1–2 months in the fridge. Vermouth is fortified wine and oxidizes like wine; a stale bottle is the most common reason homemade Manhattans taste flat.
No. They're mostly three or four ingredients. The skills are measuring, using lots of ice, and knowing whether to stir or shake. Start with our easy three-ingredient cocktails.
Easy cocktail recipes →
TechniquesBar Basics
How to turn any cocktail into a mocktail that still tastes like a proper drink: the five things alcohol does, what to swap in for each (tea, verjus, shrubs, tonic, salt), and four worked examples.
Syrups & MixersBar Basics
How to make simple syrup for cocktails and mocktails, plus rich demerara, honey, honey-ginger, cinnamon, rosemary, lavender, ginger, spiced cranberry, and real grenadine, with ratios, shelf life, and five drinks.
Whiskey & BourbonCocktails
How to make a perfect old fashioned: the classic bourbon or rye recipe, plus maple, Wisconsin brandy, rum, and coffee variations, each with a zero-proof version that's still stirred and spirit-forward.
