To a cocktail, looks are very important, but we all know no matter how good the drink looks, if it is not tasty, then the garnishing will not help.
So learn what drink goes with what, you will be surprised at the fun you will have learning and practicing on your friends.
To make a cocktail or mixer drink is not difficult, but it will be made easier if you follow a few simple rules.
Prepare your drink on a surface which can be wiped and cleaned easily.
Keep all drinks in a cool place. Keep your mixers in the refrigerator.
Always add ice to the shaker.
Crushed ice cools a drink quicker, but also dilutes the drink.
With a few exceptions, always strain a cocktail that has been shaken. To remove anything that will spoil the appearance.
Don’t reuse ice from one drink to another.
In general clear drinks are stirred and cloudy drinks are shaken.
Always clean your shaker and stirrer between drinks and rinse all spoons after each drink.
Cracked ice, put ice into strong plastic bag and hit with wooden rolling pin or use a food processor.
Crushed ice is made the same way as cracked only broken up more.
Powdered sugar, briefly grind granulated sugar in blender
Simple sugar syrup, dissolve powdered sugar in equal amounts of water. This will dissolve more readily in drinks that are shaken.
Rimming A Cocktail Glass
To rim a cocktail glass is decorative and simple. After moistening the rim, the glass can then be dipped into whatever you are using. The rimming will last longer if you place glass in the refrigerator for a couple of minutes before filling.
To moisten the rim you can use lemon juice, egg white or any other juice or syrup. It can be decorated with crushed nuts, desiccated coconut, both brown and white sugar, cocoa powder, chocolate sprinklers or anything else you fancy.
Garnishes in a cocktail are not only eye candy, but they enhance the cocktail. Here are a few of the most used.
Cocktail cherries or fresh cherries, olives, mint leaves and sprigs, pineapple wedges, fruit skewers where there are several different fruits used.
Funky ice cubes, where you freeze berries or sliced fruit within the ice cube, shaved coconut, whipped cream, ice cream, and sorbet.
Lemons, limes, oranges and apple but to name a few. You can garnish your drink without changing the taste by using strips of citrus peel, or colourful umbrellas, cocktail sticks and forks.
Various drinks can be served with plastic swords, fireworks and other bits and bobs. You name it, it can be done, for there is no definite list as to what is a garnish.
Use whatever you think is right, but keep it fresh and bear in mind the drink you are garnishing.
