Choosing a drink is about so much more than what you like the taste of. What you pick will have a strong impact on how people view you. Like it or not, we live in a world of first impressions and snap judgements. Ordering the wrong thing at the bar can easily make you seem immature, out of touch or just plain boring.
The good news is that there are a lot of manly drink options out there that will make you look good – and taste good at the same time. Some of these are well known, like the black Russian, the mojito and the martini, but there may be some on this list that you may have never heard of.
No matter what your alcohol preferences are, I’m sure that everyone can find at least one drink that they like that won’t make them look ridiculous.
If you love cocktails, then you’ll really dig Flaviar. It’s a craft spirits club, where you can order samples of great booze from around the world. I joined for the whiskey, but they also have gin, vodka, brand, tequila, and more. They deliver 1.5oz tasters based on themed packages like craft bourbon, single-malt scotch, spirits from a specific part of the world (Japan, South America), blends from a specific distillery.
There’s a bunch of other perks of becoming a member, which you can read about in my full review as a member for 3 months.
39. Sidecar
The sidecar is a cocktail with a long history with roots strongly set in New Orleans. Typically served in a glass rimmed with sugar, the sidecar is a well-balanced delight – containing some Spanish curacao and some French cognac. Over time, the sidecar has evolved and modern sidecars tend to use cognac, Cointreau and lemon juice in a 2:1:1 ratio (more or less). The cocktail is the child of an older, even more classic drink – the brandy crusta, which was one of the earliest cocktails to use citrus or a sugar rim.
38. Manhattan
The Manhattan has a strong reputation, and it’s one of those drinks that just about everybody has heard of. The drink uses whisky, sweet red vermouth and bitters along with the traditional maraschino cherry as a garnish. Rye whisky is the traditional whisky choice for the cocktail, but other types are also used, like Canadian whisky or bourbon. A number of named variants to the cocktail also exist, like the dry Manhattan, which is served with a twist and uses dry vermouth instead of sweet vermouth.
37. White Russian + Black Russian
Both black and white Russians are vodka-based drinks. For the black Russian, the International Bartenders Association (IBA) specifies a ratio of five parts vodka to two parts coffee liqueur. The drink is traditionally served on the rocks. The white Russian is a variation on the drink, where either milk or cream is added as well. Neither drink is actually Russian in origin. Instead, the name is a reference to the use of vodka as the primary spirit.
36. Tom Collins
With the Tom Collins, the primary alcohol is gin and the cocktail also includes lemon juice, sugar syrup and carbonated water. It is typically served in a Collins glass and often garnished with a lemon. The cocktail is especially versatile, with dozens of different variations. Many of these variations simply involve a change in the base alcohol. The brandy Collins is an example of this, which uses brandy, while the Jack Collins uses applejack as the base alcohol.
Leave a Reply