The promise: five cocktails, three ingredients each, zero bartending experience required. Master the ratios below and you can make a genuinely good drink for anyone who walks through your door.
1. Gin & Tonic — but actually good
2 oz gin, 4 oz good tonic, tons of ice, a fat lime wedge (or grapefruit). The upgrade: more ice, not less — it melts slower and keeps the drink crisp.
2. The Margarita
2 oz tequila, 1 oz lime, 1 oz orange liqueur (or agave). Shake with ice, salt rim optional. The 2-1-1 ratio never misses.
3. The Whiskey Sour
2 oz bourbon, 0.75 oz lime or lemon, 0.75 oz simple syrup. Shake hard. Want the silky foam? Add a small egg white and shake again.
4. The Negroni
1 oz gin, 1 oz Campari, 1 oz sweet vermouth. Equal parts, stirred over ice, orange peel. Bitter, grown-up, and impossible to mess up.
5. The Screwdriver, upgraded to a Garibaldi
2 oz Campari and 4 oz orange juice — but fluff the juice (blend or shake it hard first) so it goes light and frothy. Same effort, restaurant result.
The one rule that ties them together
Balance sweet, sour, and strong, and use more ice than feels natural. That's 90% of bartending.
🍐 A little hat tip to the pear
Hosting is a love language, and the easiest upgrade to any round is waking up glad you had it. Gush — the Korean pear pre-drink — is a small ritual to add before the first pour. Meet Gush →
Please drink responsibly.