What are the methods of making cocktails? There are a huge number of them, since each qualified bartender develops his own private equipment over time. It so happened that the methods of preparing cocktails were invented for a reason, and under each of them there is a certain reason.
These techniques have been formed for centuries, starting from the time when the very famous bartenders were in charge of the bar industry. It was their books that became the first sources of creative impulses for bartenders of all generations. What are the methods for making cocktails, find out below.
Receptions
There are 5 basic methods for making cocktails, which include established techniques:
- build
- shake
- styrene (stir);
- blend (blend);
- Frowling (throwling).
Shake
What is a shake cocktail? This is the most understandable and famous technique presented. Even if a person does not understand anything in bar business, he will understand what they are talking about. Of course, this is a shaker. It's simple: with a shake tactic, a cocktail is made using a special bar tool called a “shaker”. There are electric shakers on sale, which are often used for cooking sports nutrition.
This technique is used when it is necessary to combine difficultly mixed components, such as syrup, mashed potatoes, protein, liquor and so on. Also, using this technique, the drink is enriched with oxygen. Shake tactics consist of two mixing techniques: fine strain and shaking.
Fine strain tactics
The essence of file strain tactics is to use an additional sieve called a file strainer. This technique is used when you need to separate tiny particles of ice, herbs, fruits, and so on from the drink, but other strainers cannot cope with this.
Therefore, to make the cocktail “cleaner”, use this method. Typically, a file strainer is used only after shake tactics. It is worth adding that, as a rule, using this technique they make cocktails that are served without ice.
Shaking tactics
What is the basic essence of shaking? It consists not only in cooling and thoroughly mixing the components, but also in diluting the drink. It is very important to properly dilute the cocktail: if you take a little ice, it will instantly melt and greatly dilute the drink. Therefore, it is customary to fill the shaker with 2/3 of the volume, and pour the components on ice from less strong to stronger.
Shaker with a drink is shaken for no more than 20 seconds, moving ice cubes from the bottom to the upper zone of the shaker. The finished cocktail is filtered into a glass using a strainer (another bar tool). When shaking, the shaker must be held with both hands. It can not be directed either in its direction or in the direction of the guests. Remember that fizzy drinks are not allowed to shake in a shaker.
By the way, the shake method has its own modifications. To be precise, these are dry shake, long shake and hard shake.
Long shake is a tactic for shaking a cocktail longer. It is most often used when the composition of the drink contains whole berries, herbs or fruits. This allows you to extract a more sophisticated shade of the necessary components in the taste, without losing saturation.
Dry shake is a tactic for whipping a drink that contains no ice. It is mainly used for whipping cream and eggs (in particular, protein). Its essence is that at room temperature to achieve the formation of the same type of dense structure in drink. Using this method, a very gentle and rich cocktail is obtained. Often, at the moment of whipping the protein into the shaker, a spring is thrown from the hawthorn strainer to drink, where it acts as a whisk. Sometimes after using the “dry” whipping technique, usual ice shaking is performed to cool the cocktail.
Hard shake is a very intense cooking option compared to a simple shake. Beat the cocktail for almost the same amount of time, but the movements here are much sharper and more active. This technique is best used when you have colder and drier ice. Applying this method means making the drink more palatable and rich.
Steer
What is the method of making cocktails styrene? Translated from English, “steer” means “stir, mix” and is the most elegant way to cook. For this technique, you need a mixing cup, which is cooled in advance.
All easily mixed components of the drink are poured into it, filled with ice to 2/3 of the volume and stirred with a bar spoon, rotating the ice cubes in a circle. After drinking, it is filtered into a cocktail glass using a julep or hawthorn strainer.
Remember that the mixing time of the drink with ice should be limited. The fact is that ice has its own set temperature. As soon as the cocktail reaches a temperature identical to the temperature of the ice, the ice will no longer cool the drink, but will melt and dilute it with water. This will negatively affect the drink you are preparing.
Build
What does the method of making cocktails build look like? From English, this word translates as "build." Everything is extremely simple here: all the components of the drink must be poured into a glass in which it will be served. This technique is very common when preparing long drinks cocktails and shots. She has several tactics that we will now consider.
Building (building) - a basic and very popular technique, designed to prepare cocktails from easily mixed components, such as juice, wine, water, strong alcohol. All components are poured into a glass for serving on ice and mixed with a swiss stick or a bar spoon.
Layering is a very attractive technique, which involves layering components of different densities on top of each other, the layers do not mix with each other (previously this technique was called pousse-cafe). To prepare cocktails using this technique, you need to study the density of drinks in advance, be able to use a bar spoon and practice a lot.
What is muddling? "Madle" is translated as "give." When during cooking you need to use berries, fruits, vegetables so as to squeeze out essential oils or juice from them, use this technique. The basic extrusion tool is the madler, which is also called the “pestle”.
Flaming is a burning technique that adds elegance to the serving of a drink. For its implementation, the upper layers of a cocktail or decoration are set on fire. This technique serves as a decoration and nothing more.
Blend
Blend is a technique for preparing a cocktail in a blender (a volumetric glass is included). This is a device that is able to grind large pieces of almost any product you need to create a drink.
Basically, this mixing tactic is needed for tropical fruit shakes, smoothies, and milk drinks. With it you can make a cocktail "Pina Colada."
Frawling
"Frowling" is translated from English as "throw". This is a special stirring tactic that involves pouring a drink from one glass - with ice to another - without ice. Its essence consists in multiple transfusions at a distance of outstretched arms. As a result, the cocktail is saturated with oxygen (aeration occurs) when the contents lightly touch the ice. Thus, the drink acquires a richer and richer taste.
Rolling allows you to make a drink almost the same as in the case of Frawling, but there are still differences. The first - there is no ice in the mixing tanks, and the second - the liquid is poured over a shorter distance. This technique allows the output to get a more alcoholic and less oxygen-enriched drink than in the case of Frawling. But his taste here will be emphasized better.
Layered Cocktail Principles
The basic secret of preparing a cocktail in layers is the correct alternation of components, depending on their density. So, the lower layer should be the most dense, and the upper - the lightest. Density is revealed by sugar content - the more sugar, the higher it is. For instance:
- light drinks include cognac, vodka, whiskey;
- moderate-density drinks - dessert drinks, milk, sweet tinctures, aperitifs;
- to dense (heavy) - grenadines, liquors, liquors, creams, syrups.
To get an aesthetically pleasing drink, it is important that the colors of the selected components are combined with each other.
Cooking Technique
So, you already know the methods of making cocktails. Layered drinks are prepared as follows:
- All layers in a glass are poured alternately on a bar spoon or knife blade. Before adding the next layer, you need to wait for the previous one to take a calm state.
- The glass should be transparent, otherwise the whole meaning of layering will disappear.
- All components for a striped drink are usually taken in equal proportions.
- If there is egg yolk in the recipe, then it is carefully let into the pile along the wall.
- If the upper layer of the drink is set on fire, then it is served with a straw. In other cases, without it.
Aphrodisiac Cocktail
You need to have:
- Beilis liqueur - 20 ml;
- Curacao Blue liquor - 20 ml;
- liqueur "Kalua" - 20 ml.
Cooking process: cool all the ingredients and pour into the glass in layers.
Green Mexican Cocktail
We take:
- lemon juice - 10 ml;
- tequila - 25 ml;
- Pisan Ambon liqueur (based on green bananas) - 25 ml.
Follow these steps:
- Pour liquor into a glass, then lemon juice. Pour the tequila in the third layer.
- "Mexican" need to drink in one gulp.
Hiroshima Cocktail
Take:
- absinthe - 15 ml;
- “Baileys” - 15 ml;
- sambuca (Italian liquor with the smell of anise) - 15 ml;
- a couple drops of grenadine.
Follow these steps:
- Pour sambuca into a tall glass, then Baileys and absinthe.
- Put a little grenadine into the finished drink, which will sink to the bottom and give the effect of an explosion. This cocktail is served on fire.
A bit about electric shakers
An electric shaker is a device for quick and easy mixing of nutritional substitutes, protein mixtures and protein-carbohydrate shakes. Inside it there is a small plastic grid, which can be of different shapes, but has one function - obtaining the same mass and breaking up lumps of the mixture.
Shakers made of safe plastic are most often represented on the market. The most popular are shakers up to 750 ml. Shaker for sports nutrition is a compact convenient device that does not require special care. Very economical and easy to use in a gym.