Cocktails are the ideal way to show off your bartending skills, but not everyone has the time or ingredients to whip up a masterpiece from scratch. However, with a few simple tricks, you can unlock the power of cocktails and infuse them with all kinds of flavors.
From simple jams and fruit syrups to creative compound butter and herbal liqueurs, there’s no limit to what can be made by combining spirits with other ingredients in unique ways. Here are some tips on how to make compound butters, cocktail mixers, infused booze and more!
Compound Butters
Butter is a versatile ingredient that can be used to add flavor, texture and richness to cocktails. Compound butters are created by infusing butter with fruit juices or herbs, then straining the mixture to remove solids. The result is a concentrated butter that you can store in the fridge and use whenever you want.
Cocktail Mixers
Cocktail mixers are the unsung heroes of the cocktail world. They’re not as exciting as the spirits, but they add a lot of flavor to your drink. They’re often overlooked by home bartenders and bar patrons alike, but they deserve a place on everyone’s shelf.
Cocktail mixers are simple ingredients that add a lot of flavor to a drink without being overpowering. If you’re new to making cocktails at home or in your own bar, this is one area where you can really make an impact (and save money).
Compound Syrups
Compound syrups are simple syrup recipes that use ingredients other than sugar. The concept is that, by switching out the sugar for another substance, you can create a whole new flavor profile in your cocktail.
So how do you go about adding new flavors? First, pick an ingredient—whether it’s fresh herbs or bitters—and combine it with simple syrup in a 1:1 ratio within either mason jars or glass bottles with stoppers (or both) if you’re feeling fancy and want multiple flavors available at once).
Then add cold water until the mixture reaches room temperature and let sit overnight before pouring into your drink shaker along with your spirit base like vodka or whiskey and ice cubes for shaking!
Infused Booze
If you’re looking to add a little more flavor to your cocktails, infusing is a great place to start. Infusions fall into two categories: maceration and infusion. Both methods are used to introduce flavors into the base spirit, but they have very different results.
Maceration involves soaking an ingredient (usually fruit) in a liquid (typically alcohol). The result is a drink that tastes of both the fruit and alcohol—but not much else. In contrast, infusions involve pouring hot water over ingredients like berries or citrus peels and letting them sit overnight so their flavor seeps into the liquid.
The result is usually much less sweet than that of a macerated drink because there’s no extra sugar added from the fruit itself; instead, it just gets its sweetness from its own natural sugars which have been released during brewing time without any additional effort required by you!
Cocktail recipes can be complicated, but they don’t have to be. By following these tips and keeping your mind open, you’ll soon find that the best cocktails are not only delicious, but also simple to make at home!