Episode 108

FEATURED COCKTAIL: THE COSMOPOLITAN

This episode’s featured cocktail is the Cosmopolitan (affectionately referred to as “the Cosmo”). Despite its reputation as a second-class drink, it’s actually got a lot to offer, and it features prominently in our conversation this episode, so I thought it might be nice to offer you a nice, comprehensive recipe.

To make the Cosmopolitan Cocktail, you’ll need:

• 1.5 oz citrus vodka (like Absolut Citron)

• ½ oz triple sec or an equivalent orange liqueur

• 1 oz cranberry juice

• ¼ oz lime juice

Combine all these ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake for 10-15 seconds until well chilled and appropriately diluted, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The garnish for this drink is an orange twist, but for extra points, you can certainly elect to “flame” said garnish by expressing the oils over a flame atop the drink. This is typically executed with a simple bic lighter, but word to the wise, this is a dangerous operation and should be attempted only by an experienced professional.

The recipe we just provided for the Cosmopolitan cocktail comes from the popular new cocktail book Spirits, Sugar, Water, Bitters, by Derek Brown with Bob Yule, and we’ll certainly be mentioning those individuals later in this interview.