Become your partners favourite bartender with these hard-to-fail at-home cocktails

There is lots of training to craft nice cocktails but with quality ingredients, chilled glasses and home-made ice cubes, you too can impress your crowd.

Here are a couple of hard-to-fail cocktail recipes perfect for every occasion.

The thirst-quenching Limoncello Spritz

Fill a wine glass or highball glass with ice. Pour the Prosecco and top up with the Limoncello and a dash of soda water. Carefully stir with a spoon, then garnish with a slice of lemon and plenty of fresh peppermint.

If you dare switching the Italian Prosecco, we've enjoyed this drink using champagne expert Richard Julin’s Blanc de Blancs as well (same price bracket). You can also bring variety to this drink by changing the garnish with for instance thyme or rosemary.

In terms of balance, we follow a 3-2-0 method to make the spritz. This means 3 parts Prosecco, 2 parts Limoncello, and just a dash of soda water.

Giovanni's Americano

Bormio in the Lombardy region is a celebrated ski resort and historic town well-known for its spas and outdoor sports.

Here you'll find the cosy and intimate hotel Eden, home to Italian barman Giovanni and his favourite drink Americano. If you haven’t been, both are worthy reasons for paying your visit.

Not to be mixed-up with the snazzy Negroni drink, the Americano drink is James Bond’s first drink order in Ian Fleming’s novel, the Casino Royale from1953. 

The story starts earlier than so, the drink was first served at the Gaspare Campari’s bar in Milan 150 years ago and feature Campari and sweet Vermouth in equal parts topped with some sparkling water. 

Steps

1. To make the perfect classic Americano cocktail all you need is balance. Put a large ice cube in a whiskey-styled or highball glass. Then add 3 cl of Campari and 3 cl of sweet (red) Vermouth.
   
   
2. Top with the soda water and stir gently to mix and until the outside of the glass feels cold.
   
   
3. Garnish with a twist of orange - use a blood orange when in season. Volá, your velvet drinking experience served.

The immortal Gin & Tonic

The two-ingredient cocktail requires your full attention. From glassware and ice cubes to Gin label, type of soda water and garnish, everything should be carefully considered when mixing a Gin & Tonic.

There is of course endless room for experimentation here. With plenty of terrific Gin bottles and dozens of tonics, a nice Gin & Tonic is a mix-and-match exercise to find the combination that best suits your taste.

Steps

1. Fill a decent size glass with ice, then add the gin.
   
   
2. Top with the Premium Indian tonic water by Fever-Tree and gently stir.
   
   
3. Garnish with lemon, cucumber or seasonal decorations as you prefer.

Depending on personal taste and how wild and crazy you like to go, adjust the ratio of gin and tonic. We prefer to keep it peaceful and usually blends 2 parts gin to 5 parts tonic.

With practice and finesse, the drinks that you make in your home bar can match the drinks you’ll find at your favourite watering hole.