Cocktails & Recipes

Popular Cocktail Recipes: Ingredients, Instructions & Guide by Spirit and Event

By Gryphon C. Lane · Updated July 2026 · 10 min read

Some drinks never leave the menu, and a few keep climbing it. Right now that means the Old Fashioned holding the top spot among classics, the Margarita still the most-ordered tequila drink in the country, the Espresso Martini fully entrenched as the default after-dinner order, and low-ABV spritzes pulling more drinkers by the week. Below are twelve cocktails worth having in rotation, with exact ingredients and steps, organized by base spirit so you can shop and batch by the bottle you already have open — plus a quick-reference guide for matching cocktails to the event you're actually planning.

Building a full bar around these? Use the calculator to translate your guest count into exact bottle quantities for whichever spirits you're featuring.

12 Cocktails Everyone's Drinking Right Now

Vodka Bourbon Gin Tequila Rum Scotch

Vodka

Espresso Martini

Cold, boozy, and caffeinated — the modern classic.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz vodka
  • 1 oz fresh espresso, cooled
  • 0.5 oz coffee liqueur
  • 0.25 oz simple syrup
Instructions
  1. Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice
  2. Shake hard for 15 seconds to build the foam
  3. Double strain into a chilled coupe

Garnish: 3 coffee beans

Moscow Mule

Sharp ginger and lime in the signature copper mug.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz vodka
  • 4–6 oz ginger beer
  • 0.5 oz fresh lime juice
Instructions
  1. Fill a copper mug with ice
  2. Add vodka and lime juice
  3. Top with ginger beer and stir gently

Garnish: lime wheel, mint sprig

Bourbon

Old Fashioned

The benchmark — spirit-forward and unhurried.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz bourbon or rye
  • 1 sugar cube (or 0.25 oz simple syrup)
  • 2–3 dashes Angostura bitters
  • Orange peel
Instructions
  1. Muddle sugar and bitters with a splash of water
  2. Add bourbon and a large ice cube
  3. Stir 30 seconds; express orange peel over the top

Garnish: orange peel

Whiskey Sour

Bright citrus balanced against bourbon's backbone.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz bourbon
  • 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
  • 0.75 oz simple syrup
  • 1 egg white (optional)
Instructions
  1. Dry-shake all ingredients (no ice) for 15 seconds
  2. Add ice and shake again
  3. Strain into a rocks glass over ice

Garnish: brandied cherry, lemon twist

Gin

Negroni

Equal parts gin, Campari, and vermouth — bitter and bold.

Ingredients
  • 1 oz gin
  • 1 oz Campari
  • 1 oz sweet vermouth
Instructions
  1. Stir all ingredients with ice until well-chilled
  2. Strain into a rocks glass over a large ice cube

Garnish: orange peel

Tom Collins

Gin, lemon, and soda — the original tall refresher.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz gin
  • 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
  • 0.5 oz simple syrup
  • Soda water to top
Instructions
  1. Shake gin, lemon juice, and syrup with ice
  2. Strain into an ice-filled Collins glass
  3. Top with soda water

Garnish: lemon wheel, cherry

Tequila

Margarita

Tequila, lime, and orange liqueur — still unbeaten.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz blanco tequila
  • 1 oz fresh lime juice
  • 0.75 oz orange liqueur
Instructions
  1. Salt the rim of a rocks glass (optional)
  2. Shake all ingredients hard with ice
  3. Strain over fresh ice

Garnish: lime wheel

Paloma

Tequila and grapefruit soda — Mexico's true favorite.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz blanco tequila
  • 0.5 oz fresh lime juice
  • Grapefruit soda to top
  • Pinch of salt
Instructions
  1. Fill a highball glass with ice
  2. Add tequila and lime juice
  3. Top with grapefruit soda and stir gently

Garnish: grapefruit wedge, salt rim

Rum

Mojito

Muddled mint, lime, and soda over crushed ice.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz white rum
  • 0.75 oz fresh lime juice
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 8–10 mint leaves
  • Soda water to top
Instructions
  1. Gently muddle mint with sugar and lime juice
  2. Add rum and crushed ice
  3. Top with soda water and stir

Garnish: mint sprig

Daiquiri

Rum, lime, and sugar, shaken until silky.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz white rum
  • 1 oz fresh lime juice
  • 0.75 oz simple syrup
Instructions
  1. Shake all ingredients hard with ice
  2. Double strain into a chilled coupe

Garnish: lime wheel

Scotch

Penicillin

Scotch, honey-ginger, and lemon, with a smoky float.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz blended Scotch
  • 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
  • 0.75 oz honey-ginger syrup
  • 0.25 oz smoky single malt, floated
Instructions
  1. Shake blended Scotch, lemon juice, and syrup with ice
  2. Strain over fresh ice
  3. Float the smoky single malt on top

Garnish: candied ginger

Rob Roy

A Manhattan's Scotch-forward cousin, stirred and stately.

Ingredients
  • 2 oz blended Scotch
  • 1 oz sweet vermouth
  • 2 dashes Angostura bitters
Instructions
  1. Stir all ingredients with ice until well-chilled
  2. Strain into a chilled coupe

Garnish: brandied cherry or lemon twist

Which Cocktail for Which Event

The same twelve drinks work very differently depending on the room. A few guidelines for matching cocktails to the occasion:

EventGood picksWhy
WeddingEspresso Martini, Old Fashioned, Negroni, MargaritaElegant, familiar, and easy to batch for a large guest list
Holiday partyOld Fashioned, Penicillin, Rob Roy, Moscow MuleWarm, spiced flavors that suit cold-weather gatherings
Super Bowl partyMoscow Mule, Paloma, Margarita, MojitoCasual, crowd-pleasing, and simple to pre-batch by the pitcher
Backyard partyMojito, Daiquiri, Margarita, Tom CollinsLight, refreshing, and forgiving in the heat
Cocktail partyNegroni, Espresso Martini, Penicillin, Whiskey SourSophisticated sipping drinks that hold up to conversation

For the full breakdown on any of these — quantities, setup, and shopping lists — see the event-specific guides.

Batching for a crowd Most of these scale cleanly: multiply the spirit, citrus, and syrup by your guest count and batch everything except carbonated ingredients (soda water, ginger beer, sparkling wine) and ice — add those fresh at serving time. Undiluted batches hold in the fridge for 24–48 hours.

Plan your bar by the bottle

Pick a spirit above, then get exact quantities scaled to your guest count.

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