Mixers 101

As described by Kevin Alexander, Thrillist's National Writer-at-Large focusing on the restaurant and bar industry, “the cocktail revolution was a sexy thing -- it involved unlocking a history we'd forgotten, improving ingredients, mastering techniques, and occasionally lighting citrus on fire.”  The craft cocktail revolution was a sexy thing…although it’s over now, the level of creativity and quality that it raised cocktail mixers to was incredible. It reached a point that was maybe too much and might have been the beginning of the end, but there is no denying that even basic bar mixers will never be the same because of it.

While you may not need 20 different flavors of bitters now that the cocktail revolution is fading, the best cocktails come from the freshest, quality mixers. If there’s not time to squeeze your own limes and grapefruits, there are grab n’ go fresh juices galore at every grocery store now. 

Lime juice is a heavy hitter in the world of cocktail mixers.  

Patron’s Cocktail Lab is a tequila cocktail bible the Craven + Co. team uses to choose innovative cocktails for events.  The recipes have been created by the finest mixologists in the industry, and we’ve never been disappointed.  If you type lime juice in the search bar to filter their 541 tequila cocktail recipes, it boils it down to 391. Our point is: that’s a lotta cocktails that require lime juice. They have a tried and true Patron Classic Margarita recipe that is easy and crowd favorite. 

We love the simplicity of the Classic Gimlet. It’s bright and fresh with lime juice + vodka or gin plus a little simple syrup. If you swap out the simple syrup with St. Germain’s Elderflower Liqueur, you might as well get comfortable because you’ll want the bartender to keep em’ coming all night. 

Every good bar needs a few other citrus juices too, just not in as much volume as lime juice. A fresh squeezed orange juice, like Evolution’s cold-pressed version, can make a good ol’ Screwdriver your new favorite drink. Same goes for a fresh squeezed grapefruit juice.  Invest a little in the juice and you’ll ordering up a Greyhound Cocktail, even though you’ve never been sure exactly what a Greyhound actually is: vodka with grapefruit juice. A little lemon juice is also good to have on hand to make some fresh ones like a French 75 or a Tom Collins, but if you have to leave one citrus out, lemon would be the one you wouldn’t miss.

Sodas can serve a dual purpose. They can provide a good selection of non-alcoholic drinks to round out your bar.  Plus, all of these old standbys require one soda or another: Jack and Coke, Rum and Coke, 7&7, Vodka Soda, and Gin & Tonic. We salute these simple cocktails for their ease of ordering when a complicated bar menu has you stumped. To have a well-stocked bar, you need to include Coke, Diet Coke, 7Up, Soda and Tonic. A substitute for club soda that has taken off in recent years is Topo Chico. We love it to top off a classic margarita as well. You should know it’s bubbles are more intense than your standard club soda. We also love Rambler Sparkling Water, which has nice finer bubbles + it’s filtered using good ol’ Texas limestone.

You could get experimental with the other soda brands for Coke, Diet Coke and 7Up, but be careful. The diehard whiskey & Coke folks may not be ecstatic about your fancy cola.  One safe bet that would actually be a welcome surprise is Mexican Coke in glass bottles. According to this NY Times article on the so-called cult classic, “Among subcultures that pride themselves on early adoption — techies, foodies, Brooklyn baristas — Mexican Coke is the new black.”