What are the most common drinks a bartender should know right off hand?!
What are the most common drinks a bartender should know right off hand?
I am looking at getting a new bar job and want to be on point during my interview. I work at a small bar that is mostly older people, so I'm a little rusty of some things.
Answers:
If you're dealing with an older crowd, don't worry so much about the newer drinks out there and focus on some of the classics.
I would say (in no particular order):
Martini
Manhattan/Rob Roy
Gimlet
Wines (know the characteristics of the wines you sell)
Rusty Nail
Harvey Wallbanger
Now, this is based on the "older" crowd where I used to work and I do mean older in the sense that a large majority were either retired or well on their way to being there.
For a slightly younger crowd think of the following:
Long Island Iced Tea
Jaeger Bombs
Broken Golf Cart
Slammers (tequilla or rum)
Margarita
Flavoured martinis (like appletinis and chocotinis)
Cosmopolitan
And some warning drinks that the person you're serving might be underage:
Fuzzy navel
Singapore sling/Planter's Punch
Killer Kool-Aid
Pina Colada
Creamsicle
Strawberry Daquiri
Of course, your mileage may vary.
Jager Bombs - Jager and Red Bull (drop shot of Jager into Glass of Red Bull)
Cosmopolitain - 1 oz Vodka, .5 oz Cointreau and Cranberry Juice (combine in Shaker w/ice serve in martini glass)
Incredible Hulk - Hpnotiq and Hennessey (shot of rock glass)
Long island, kamikaze, black / white russian, margarita, 57 chevy, pina collada, sex on the beach, woo woo, cosmo, martinis, electric lemonade, blue hawaiian, leg spreader, sex with an alligator,lemon drop, mind eraser, mai tai.There are tons, it just depends on the kind of bar you plan on working at.
know the bascis
THIS LOOKS LIKE A LOT OF STUFF TO TAKE IN AND LEARN BUT IT'S NOT REALLY, IT'S ALL REALLY QUITE SIMPLE.
A great place for anything cocktail is Bols Cocktails. The "Featured Cocktail" at the bottom of the window has seven very handy cocktails to work with (Cosmopolitan, Manhattan, Martini, Caipirinha, Mojito, Old Fashioned, Sidecar). The Sours are also popular recipes in which the spirit/liqueur element is almost interchangeable. This give you a couple of handfuls full of recipes without having to know handfuls of recipes. The recipe for a sour being 2 measures alcohol, measure of lemon or lime (depending on either the preference of the drinker (or the maker) or the liqueur itself) and a tsp of sugar/sugar syrup. Alcohol used can be whiskey, gin, white rum (although this is called a Daiquiri despite sharing the same ratio to a Sour), Brandy, Absinthe (try to keep the lemon and Absinthe ratio fairly even for this one, adding a bit more of the sugar/sugar syrup to you find the perfect ratio), Tequila, Vodka, Dark Rum, Pisco Brandy (colourless Brandy from South America), and a very nice (and one for those trendy or 'I want everyone to think I'm trendy' drinkers) Madori. Most of these will be shaken with ice and served in an old fashioned glass except for maybe the Madori Sour which should be served in a tall or fancy glass to show off as much of the colour as possible.
To know a cocktail of each, well, method (if I may) of cocktail is always a must to show variety. These methods are build (pour one ingredient on top of another), blend (this is in a blender with crushed ice or no ice depending on the recipe), muddle (use a meddler stick to crush herbs or fruit in a glass, usually with a sugar syrup), layer (this is where one liquid 'floats' on top of another which is achieved by pouring into a shot glass, one at a time, making sure to keep the order perfect), stir (with a straw, bar spoon or swizzle stick in ice and strain into glass), and shake (with ice, in a cocktail shaker until shaker itself 'frosts' then strain into glass). Most of these methods are covered in the above mention cocktails except layer. That is where the classic B52 comes into play. As with almost all layered drinks, the B52 comes in a shot glass. Start with a Kahlua or similar coffee liqueur and fill glass to a third of the way. Take a clean, cold spoon and rest it just above the Kahlua (I was taught to have the back down but a lot do it back of the spoon up, it's whatever you can pull off) and pour Baileys, or similar Irish Cream liqueur, to the two thirds mark and then grab a new, clean, cold spoon and lay the final layer of your cocktail with some triple sec. The latter is rather difficult to get perfect and clear so don't get too down on your self if you don't get it perfect (especially if your Kahlua and Baileys layer is spot-on). when practising your layering, try not to pour the liquids from their bottles. Try pouring what you need into another shot glass then pouring onto your spoon, into your cocktail. This will make a lot easier and allow you to master your layering technique.
well I think that is all,
Lindsay…
common "well" drinks include Cape Cod-vodka and cranberry, tequila sunrise-tequila and OJ, and screwdriver-vodka and OJ. Mixed drinks and shots? That's determined by your clientele. Those are too numerous to list.