Cognac is a drink with a velvety, pleasant taste. It is usually enjoyed neat, but it is also used as a base for a wide variety of cocktails: from warming to refreshing, with coffee, juice, liqueurs, bitters, and other alcohols.
Sidecar
According to legend, the recipe for the classic Sidecar cocktail was invented in one of the bars of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel shortly after the end of World War I. The cocktail is made with VSOP cognac, Triple Sec or Cointreau orange liqueur, and lemon juice. It is served in glasses decorated with a sugar rim and a strip of lemon zest.
Ingredients:
- 50 ml cognac
- 25 ml Cointreau liqueur
- 25 ml lemon juice
- A handful of crushed ice
- Sugar and lemon zest for serving 1 piece
Preparation:
- Mix the cognac, liqueur, juice, and ice in a cocktail shaker.
- Pour into a chilled glass decorated with a sugar rim and lemon or orange zest.
Sazerac with cognac
A variation on the classic New Orleans Sazerac, which uses cognac instead of rye whiskey, as well as traditional ingredients: absinthe, orange liqueur, and Creole bitters.
Ingredients
- 10 ml absinthe
- 60 ml cognac
- 10 ml sugar syrup
- 3 drops of Peychaud’s bitters
- 1 drop of Angostura bitters.
- Crushed ice
Preparation
Mix cognac, sugar syrup, ice, bitters, and liqueur in a cocktail shaker. Pour ice into a chilled glass, add absinthe, and add 70 ml of water. Let stand. After a while, pour out the absinthe and water (if you don’t want to waste the absinthe, pour it into a shot glass) and pour the contents of the shaker into the empty glass. Serve garnished with lemon zest.
French Connection
One of the simplest cocktails, requiring only two ingredients: young cognac and Amaretto almond liqueur. This cocktail was named after the movie The French Connection, starring Gene Hackman. Variations on this cocktail include The Godfather, which uses Scotch instead of cognac, and The Godmother, which uses vodka instead of brandy.