Super Bowl XLIII Drink #4: Pre-mixed Cocktails

If you’ve read the week’s previous posts and found nothing that sounds delicious I offer one final alcoholic option.  Some cocktails can be pre-mixed and chilled for later service.  Gary Regan makes pre-mixed drinks an entire category in The Joy of Mixology and I’ll be taking my recipes from there as I don’t have much experience with cocktails of the pre-mixed variety.  I will present one warning about full strength cocktails for a long duration party.  They’re powerful mojo and some of them are very easy to drink.  There is a distinct possibility of over-imbibing which can lead to badness, so be careful with these.

There are any number of cocktails that could be pre-mixed but there are some things to consider when doing so.  If your drink requires anything bubbly (soda, tonic, champagne, etc) it probably isn’t a good choice for a pre-mix.  Fresh fruit juices change flavor in a short amount of time so pre-mix drinks made with them often taste different than you’d expect.  Finally you’ll want to add some water to a normal drink recipe to make it a pre-mix recipe.  This addition is to account for the shaking or stirring which melts ice in to the drink.  Since your pre-mix drink will be chilled before serving the shaking/stirring step is not necessary.

Now for some recipes:

Cosmopolitan (Bottled) - Joy of Mixology

10 oz Citrus Vodka
4 oz Triple Sec
2 oz Fresh Lime Juice
1 oz Cranberry Juice
5 oz Bottled Water

Manhattan (Bottled) - Joy of Mixology

12 oz Bourbon
4 oz Sweet Vermouth
5 oz Bottled Water
1 tsp Angostura Bitters
Maraschino Cherries for Garnish

Margarita (Bottled) - Joy of Mixology

8 oz White Tequila
6 oz Triple Sec
3 oz Fresh Lime Juice
5 oz Bottled Water
Lime Wedges for Garnish

Sidecar Deluxe (Bottled) - Joy of Mixology

12 oz Cognac
3 oz Grand Marnier
3 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
6 oz Bottled Water
Lemon Twists for Garnish

For all of the above cocktails all you need do is mix them up and let them chill for a while.  For the ones with fresh juice I’d suggest making them in the morning of the game.  That way the juice doesnt’ change flavor too much before service.  For each person I’d recommend a 4-5 oz cocktail poured from the above.  That will make them about even with a standard cocktail for those keeping track.