Build your Cocktail Box

The Cosmopolitan is a modern classic. Many believe it to be created by Cheryl Cook in the 1980s. The Martini Queen of South Beach wanted to give her signature drink a twist - and a colour - that would appeal to women. Well, it worked The glamorous Cosmo found fame on Sex and the City. Having said all that...a similar recipe appears in Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars 1903-1933. A modern Martini? Or a classic reinvented? It’s your bar... you decide.

We all know the classic Margarita. So who is Tommy? And what makes his drink so different? Well, it was actually created by Julio Bermejo. He named it after his family's Mexican bar/restaurant in San Francisco - the self-proclaimed premier tequila bar on earth. Now also a destination for many of the premier bartenders and bar flies on earth as well. Tommy's adds a Mexican twist by replacing the triple sec of a classic Margarita with sweet agave syrup.

Mother Russia. You might think of vast desert steppes. Chilling Siberian winters. Endless rolling plains. Well, think again. On a recent visit to St Petersburg, NIO Cocktails Head Mixologist Patrick Pistolesi takes a stroll around the stunning Summer Gardens. The early spring bloom is as unexpected as it is intense. Colourful. Perfumed. Unforgettable. Inspired, he sets out to recreate the experience. The result is a sophisticated NIO signature cocktail. A magical flower garden in a glass.

It is the end of the 19th century. The US and Spain are at war. US vessel The Maine sinks off the coast of Havana. One of the survivors reaches the shore. Thank goodness. Because he washes up in a village called...Daiquiri. Shipwrecks tend to give you a thirst and so he heads to the local bar. Straight rum seems a little strong. He adds lime juice. Too tart. He adds sugar. Perfect. The Daiquiri is made to drink cold and clean. A white sandy Cuban beach is optional.