The Top 3-Ingredient Cocktails Every Home Bartender Should have.

Everyone loves a night out at the bar with friends for an evening of fun and questionable decisions. Letting a team of pro bartenders, masters of their craft, concoct delicious things from all of the tools of their trade is always a great start to an evening. Watching the theatre show of a great bar staff unfold in front of you, surrounded by friends and strangers alike, and enjoying the dimly-lit atmosphere and the on-point playlist sounds like a lot of fun.

But do you know what else is a lot of fun? Sitting on your couch in your most comfortable sweatpants with messy hair while enjoying a fantastic cocktail and watching the best Netflix shows, We’ve compiled a list of ten 3-ingredient classic (and modern classic) cocktails that are easy to make and don’t require anything fancy to replicate. With a bar of just a handful of bottles and a few other ingredients, you can make some awesome cocktails that would impress just about anyone.

Old Fashioned

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 6 minutes
Yield: 1 cocktail

Ingredients:

• 2 ounce bourbon (Evan Williams White Label preferred)
• .25 ounce simple syrup (1:1)
• 5 dashes Angostura bitters

Method:

1. Add all ingredients to a mixing glass.
2. Add ice and stir for 15-20 seconds.
3. Strain into a rocks glass with ice or large cube.
4. Garnish with an orange twist.

Manhattan

The perfect Manhattan. Some of us know that a “perfect Manhattan” is a half-ounce each of sweet and dry vermouth along with two ounces of rye whiskey, but what about a perfect Manhattan? This is a lifelong road traveled by professional and home bartenders alike. Traditionally, the Manhattan has a ratio the same as the area code, 2:1:2, meaning 2 ounces of rye whiskey, 1 ounce of vermouth, and 2 dashes of bitters. If you’re like us, and prefer a slightly spicier, rye whiskey-forward cocktail, you’ll love this one.

Prep Time: none
Total Time: 2 minutes
Yield: 1 cocktail

Ingredients:

• 2.5 ounce rye whiskey (Wild Turkey 101 rye preferred)
• 1 ounce sweet vermouth (Dolin preferred)
• 5 dashes Angostura bitters

Method:

1. Add all ingredients to a mixing glass.
2. Add ice and stir 15-20 seconds.
3. Strain into a chilled coupe glass.
4. Garnish with a Luxardo cherry and an orange twist.

The Perfect Martini

e’re pretty sure there isn’t a more contested classic cocktail than the Martini. Gin or vodka? (Gin)  Shaken or stirred? (Stirred) Twist or olive? (Twist) Dry or wet? (Dry) We’re here to put it all to rest. After *many* trial and error tests (somebody has to do it,) this is the best one. Period. A great Martini is all about two things: the ratio of gin to vermouth and how cold it is. A perfectly made Martini can show you the face of God and you can smile while you bask in Her glory. A 5:1 gin to vermouth ratio with a single dash of orange bitters, stirred for nearly a minute and garnished with a lemon twist, produces our perfect Martini. We can debate the finer points some other time.

Prep Time: none
Total Time: 2 minutes
Yield: 1 perfect Martini

Ingredients:

• 2.5 ounce gin (Beefeater preferred)
• .5 ounce dry vermouth (Dolin preferred)
• 1 dash orange bitters

Method:

1. Add all ingredients to a mixing glass.
2. Add ice and stir for 60 seconds.
3. Strain into a frozen coupe glass.
4. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Daiquiri

“Some are born great. Others achieve greatness.” – William Shakespeare

The Daiquiri is a perfect cocktail. Plain and simple. The combination of rum, lime, and sugar, shaken with ice is just, well, perfect. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Most people today hear the word “daiquiri” and expect a frozen, neon-colored, overly sugared abomination straight from 1996. In reality, a traditional daiquiri is as good as it gets. Bracingly cold with a punch of acidity and balanced by the sweetness of the sugar syrup, there’s literally no faults to be found. Try one and then thank us later.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 6 minutes
Yield: 1 cocktail

Ingredients:

• 2 ounce rum (Plantation 3 Star preferred)
• .75 ounce lime juice
• .75 ounce simple syrup (1:1 sugar:water)

Method:

1. Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker.
2. Add ice and shake for 15 seconds.
3. Strain into a chilled coupe glass.
4. Garnish with a lime wheel.

Margarita

Consistently topping the list of America’s Most Popular Cocktails, the margarita holds that lauded position for a reason: it’s delicious. Because the classic margarita consists of just three ingredients, concentrating on the quality of those ingredients is paramount to crafting a stellar margarita. Don’t skimp on the choice of tequila or orange liqueur and skip the “sour mix.” Opt for fresh squeezed lime juice instead.

Prep Time: 3 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 1 cocktail

Ingredients:

• 2 ounce tequila (Lunazúl blanco preferred)
• 1 ounce Cointreau
• .75 ounce lime juice

Method:

1. Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker.
2. Add ice and shake for 10-20 seconds.
3. Strain into a salt-rimmed rocks glass filled with ice.
4. Garnish with a lime wheel.