Brandy Cocktails That You Should Try

Brandy cocktail recipes are often quite simple, making them an excellent choice for mixology beginners: just a few well-chosen ingredients that accent the flavor of the spirit. Here are 4 Brandy Cocktails that you should try.

1. The Brandy Cocktail
This is the brandy incarnation of the essential cocktail: a distilled spirit, water, sugar and a dash or two of bitters.

2 ounces of brandy
A quarter teaspoon of simple sugar syrup
2 dashes of bitters
A twist of lemon peel

Stir all of the cocktail ingredients together with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with the twist. A pleasant variation uses half an ounce of orange curacao in place of the sugar syrup.

2. The Sidecar
The Sidecar is one of the classic sour cocktails. With its fresh, zingy flavors, the Sidecar is one of many brandy cocktails and liquors perfect for your celebration.

2 ounces of brandy, preferably cognac
1 ounce of Cointreau
3-quarters of an ounce of lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
Fine sugar for garnishing

The perfect Sidecar requires a little preparation. Swipe a cut lemon around the rim of a cocktail glass, then dip the glass in the sugar so the rim gets a crust of sugar and lemon. Chill the glass till you need it. Shake the ingredients with ice and strain into the glass.

If you switch the cognac for pisco and use lime juice in place of lemon, the result is a Pisco Sour.

3. The Corpse Reviver
With its evocative name, this drink would be great for your Halloween party. It uses vermouth and apple brandy as well as the more usual grape.

1 and a half ounces of grape brandy
3-quarters of an ounce of a good apple brandy, such as Calvados
3-quarters of an ounce of sweet vermouth

Pour all of the ingredients into a shaker, along with ice; stir very well, then strain your Corpse Reviver into a chilled cocktail glass.

4. The Fort Washington Flip
This unusual recipe uses applejack as its base, giving it a pleasantly comforting flavor. The addition of an egg makes this a great drink for winter evenings.

1 and a half ounces of applejack
3-quarters of an ounce of Benedictine
Half an ounce of maple syrup
One medium-sized egg, very fresh.

Place the spirits and the egg in the shaker then fill with ice. Shake hard for a minimum of ten seconds, then strain the drink into a chilled cocktail glass.

What’s your favorite cocktail?

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