Before making a cocktail, it is worth noting the basic order of cocktail-making steps that will set you off on the right foot.
The basic steps for the majority of cocktails
-
- Get yourself a chilled glass
- Choose your preferred botanical garnish
- Pour the liquid ingredients into the cocktail shaker
- Add ice if required
- Shake or mix the ingredients using the technique specified in the recipe.
- Strain or pour into the prepared glass
- Add your garnish
- Serve
Mixology Utensils & Accessories
Cocktail Shaker
A cocktail shaker is the one accessory you cant do without. The cobbler shaker is the best shaker to use as a novice mixologist. Our stainless steel 24oz shaker consists of three parts: a conical shaking tin, a strainer and a tight-fitting cap. All the ingredients, including the ice, are added to the tin, then the strainer and cap are secured in place and away you go!
Cocktail Strainer
Cocktail strainers are used to stop shards of ice and fruit pips getting into the cocktail. You will need a good eye and a steady hand when pouring the cocktail from the shaker to your glass.
The Hawthorne strainer contains a metal disc with a coiled spring around the edge. Double or fine-straining is recommended to remove all traces of pureed fruit or ice fragments.
Cocktail Muddling Spoon
This stainless steel cocktail muddling spoon is great for stirred cocktails. The spoon can also be used to pour in a small amount of liquid to ‘sit’ on top of your cocktail.
Measuring Jigger
Premium cocktails are all about achieving the right balance of ingredients, so we recommend using a jigger. The jigger will allow you to measure out exact amounts of alcohol. Our jigger is 15 ml and 30 ml.
Spirits Pourer
Serve spirits at a medium pace with a spirits pourer. It is inserted into the top of spirits bottles for freehand pouring. It allows you to get the perfect pour every time and makes sure you don’t waste a drop of precious alcohol!
Ice
When making signature cocktails, you can’t have enough ice. Make sure to prepare plenty of ice in advance. Some cocktails specify crushed or cracked ice. To crush ice, put the ice cubes in a strong polythene bag and gently hit them off the side of a counter until they are finely broken. You can make cracked ice in a similar way but without breaking the ice so finely.