It’s date night, and I want to stay in for a romantic evening. There are many things I can do to prepare and create an elegant nightlife vibe such as serving great tasting cocktails presented in stylish glassware. I’m a firm believer that drinks should be served in elegant glassware just to help set the mood right. With the right recipe and perfect presentation, I’ll be able to show off my ever-improving bartending skills, plus we will both have fun tasking some new delicious creations.
Before we get to the cool cocktail recipes, let’s talk about the tools needed to create fabulous beverage concoction. The most important of these is beautiful glassware. Since you’re putting a good amount of time, energy and sass into creating an awesome drink, you must serve it in a nice glass. Personally, I hate drinking wine out of a plastic cup. Well, the same thing applies to fabulous cocktails. Here are my favourites:
I’m a fan of old-fashioned glasses; I think it helps the set the mood and make the experience another notch better. They’re fancy, classy, and a throwback to the days of flapper dresses and bow ties. It makes me feel like I’ve been casted in the move, The Great Gatsby. Now, you’ll see these glasses at high-end hipster bars that charge between $15 and $20 per drink. You can save some money and serve your date a super-elegant libation like a whisky sour in these Cristal D’Arques glasses.
Check out this Whiskey Sour recipe
from Jamie Oliver:
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Ingredients:
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Directions
- Put ice and all of the ingredients into a shaker and shake hard for about 20 seconds to chill the liquid really well
- Strain the mix into a glass filled with ice and garnish with the cherry and orange slice
Some date nights you feel like a glass of beer over a cocktail. Good thing is that beer could be served in a trendy glass rather than a can or bottle. Pour a Lambic beer into a Spiegelau stemmed pilsner glass. According to the experts at BeerAdvocate.com, a proper vessel “captures and enhances volatiles, while it induces and supports large foam heads.” Beers that best suit these types of glasses are imperial IPA, American wild ale, Belgian dark ale, Belgian strong pale ale, Lambic, Scotch ale, etc.
The Perfect Martini
Martini’s are the official date-night cocktail. However, to all my ladies, you may want to pass on the cosmopolitans or other pink drinks and go for a more gender-neutral variation like a lemon basil martini. It’s the perfect refreshment on a summer evening.
Check out this recipe from Family Fresh Cooking. Pour this drink into these posh martini glasses with gold decorations from Brilliant.
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Ingredients:
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Directions
- Basil Simple Syrup: Bring sugar, water & basil to a boil. Stir so the sugar dissolves. Discard basil & chill syrup in a jar in the fridge until ready to use. This syrup stays fresh for up to a week.
- Martini: Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the basil syrup, lemon juice, St. Germaine & vodka. Shake well. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Top with sliced basil & tonic water.
You can never go wrong by serving slushy margaritas for two. I love a good frozen margarita, they are easy to make and so darn delicious. Beware: They are highly addictive and you could consume them faster than expected. (You may want to pace yourself on date night). For this recipe, you’ll need a blender to mix the ice. If you are a margarita aficionado, you’ll be inclined to get the Margaritaville Frozen Drink Maker.
Check out this Margarita recipe 
from Chow.com:
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Ingredients:
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Directions
Blending up batches of these tasty margaritas for your next party is the drinks equivalent of success insurance. This version goes minimal on the sugar and has a nice kick of alcohol.
Salute, Cheers, Slainte, and Viva!
