UK Edition
Liquid engineering: how to create the ultimate cocktail soirée
"Do not make the cocktails too strong and make a popular one like gin and orange, or a dry martini. As an alternative have sherry and tomato juice. If you can afford it most men prefer whisky and soda." We’ve come a long way, thank goodness, since Barbara Cartland proffered this advice to cocktail party hosts in her 1962 Etiquette Handbook.
Since the New York and London cocktail renaissance of the Nineties when mixologists seduced us with the cocktail all over again, we’ve graduated from Sea Breezes to Mojitos and Caipirinhas, with the odd Espresso Martini thrown in for good measure. In short, our tastes have evolved and are infinitely more sophisticated (after all, the Negroni, aka the drinker’s drink, has gone mainstream) and so has our knowledge.
We’re all semi-pros now, so hosting a cocktail soirée at home is a serious affair. From the leather-handled Japanese ice pick and the curve of the silver shaker, to the clink of the ice and the weight of the cut-glass crystal coupe – it should be a glamorous performance where every detail counts. Whether you’re hiring staff, or playing bartender yourself, we’ve identified the best bar cabinets and trolleys, tools and tomes to ensure the perfect serve.
THE FURNITURE
As the centrepiece of a party, clearly the cocktail cabinet should be a talking point in its own right. When he’s not custom-making models for the likes of Gleneagles, Andrew Nebbett is the go-to dealer for vintage trolleys and cabinets of all kinds. And flinging open the doors of Amy Somerville's art deco-style Manhattan Drinks Cabinet in walnut, oak and bronze would certainly get an evening off to a good start. A 1940s cocktail trolley owned by ballet dancer Rudolph Nureyev was the inspiration for the graceful brass and glass Nureyev Trolley by Soane, or for the bespoke bar of your dreams, interiors agency Studio Indigo will create and install whatever you want – recent projects have included a cocktail station in a billionaire’s bedroom and a £250,000 whisky bar for a yacht.
THE GLASSWARE
A cocktail stands or falls on the glass it is served in – so for a selection of vintage designs from across the 20th century head to the industry’s favourite glass dealer Thomas Kleibrink. Or invest in a set of six engraved deco-style coupes from The Bar at The Connaught, the establishment that recently walked off yet again with the title of World’s Best Cocktail Bar.
For something more contemporary, try the understated precision of J. Hill’s Standard, an atelier in Ireland specialising in artisan crystal. The avant-garde creations of Czech designer Martin Jakobsen – spherical cocktail glasses and luminescent, cut-glass mixing jugs – are also pleasingly quirky.
Ideally, the glass shouldn’t obscure the drink, but Tom Dixon’s copper-clad Tank Whiskey Glasses, are the exception for something short and strong. As is the Diamond Double Old Fashioned by Richard Brendon, a tactile twist on the traditional cut-glass whisky snifter. Just launched too is Peter Ting's Boogie Woogie range, produced by Cumbria Crystal the crystal-cut horizontal and vertical designs inspired by Mondrian's composition paintings. But whatever glassware you go for, stick it in the freezer for a couple of minutes while you’re mixing the drink – it will make all the difference.
THE TOOLS
The shaker is the other star of this show – so better make it a good one. The heyday of shaker design was the 1920s and 1930s, when all the big names – Tiffany, Dunhill, Asprey – released designs that have become classics. Few dealers in the world have a better selection than the Pullman Gallery in St James’s, London, which boasts the famous 1920s Henckels Zeppelin, a model that dismantles into a fully-fledged cocktail kit.
Cocktail Kingdom offers everything from strainers and jiggers to bar spoons and ice tongs. Its speciality is Japanese barware – I defy you not to buy a maple-handled ice pick – as well as great gadgets, including a press for perfect ice balls. Good ice is essential if you want to make cocktails that look really pro.
A commercial-grade Hoshizaki ice-making machine would be ideal, but otherwise, order by the cube, ball and block from Zero Degrees Ice. Of course, you could just call in the experts, and you won’t find many better than the mixologists from Dandelyan at the Mondrian.
THE DRINKS
Every good cocktail party should begin with a little glass of champagne, just to awaken the senses, so to speak. The sumptuous Dom Pérignon 2006 – with limited-edition box and label by German artist Michael Riedel – will do nicely. Otherwise Laurent Perrier Brut is perfect for champagne cocktails.
For gin aficionados, boutique "gin tailor" The Cambridge Distillery will create a bespoke recipe using plants from your own garden, or you could learn to make your own at London’s first "gin hotel", The Distillery, a four-floor tribute to all things juniper, which opens in Portobello Road this month.
Fans of bitter-sweet sparklers such as the Aperol Spritz will also delight at the new bergamot liqueur Italicus – simply mix 50/50 with prosecco over ice, and garnish with green olives. Or try a double shot of the Belsazar Rosé vermouth from the Black Forest, with tonic and a wedge of grapefruit.
For the ultimate whisky and soda, tap the trend for Japanese whisky with the top-notch Hibiki 17, or mix an authentic Manhattan with a pre-Prohibition rye from The Old Spirits Company. If you prefer your whisky neat, savour the recently released second chapter of the Balvenie DCS Compendium, a five-part collection of 25 rare malts from one of Speyside’s most celebrated distilleries.
For tequila with credentials, try Ocho Single Barrel Los Fresnos Añejo 2013, a single-estate, single-barrel, vintage tequila from one of the best distilleries in the Jalisco Highlands. Or if it’s rum you’re after, The Duppy Share Caribbean Rum will inject a vivid shot of colour to Tiki drinks of all kinds.
Peripatetic types should also snap up a Cocktail Bitters Traveler’s Set of old-style miniatures from The Bitter Truth. And for when you want to keep it simple, lay in a bottled Negroni from Soho’s famous Bar Termini, then fill a glass with ice and pour. Glenmorangie Milsean, part of their Private Edition series, is the ideal wintery after-dinner dram and is also super collectable.
THE BOOKS
Start a cocktail library with the best: a first-edition copy of Harry Craddock’s witty The Savoy Cocktail Book, published in 1930 and still relevant (from the Pullman Gallery). The recently published Regarding Cocktails (Phaidon), by the late, great founder of Milk & Honey in New York, Sasha Petraske, should also be on every drinks’ lovers bookshelf for its simple, delicious – and meticulous – recipes.
When it comes to large gatherings, I often find myself turning to the recipes in Punch: The Delights (and Dangers) of the Flowing Bowl by Dave Wondrich (Perigee Books), a rollicking account of the drink that seduced Byron, Kipling and Dickens, and has fuelled parties on a grand scale for 400 years.
Design buffs will be fascinated by Futurist Mixology, a limited-edition account of the eccentric and short-lived Italian cocktail scene that produced renowned futurist designs for the likes of Campari and Cocchi Vermouth. And for invaluable advice on everything from buying the best brands of spirits to how glass shape affects taste, as well as delicious recipes, Victoria Moore’s How To Drink (Granta) is an entertaining guide to always serving the perfect drinks for every occasion.
Alice Lascelles is the author of Ten Cocktails: The Art of Convivial Drinking (Hodder & Stoughton)