Easy - Make Black Russians and other Cocktails with Vodka

As part of my cocktail recipes series I'm doing specials on each of the five base spirits, that is Vodka, Rum, Gin, Tequila, and Whiskey. This is the Vodka special, I'll show you how to mix three great cocktails that have Vodka as their base ingredient, maybe you'll find something new and to your taste, but don't turn away from ones you don't like the look of without trying them, great cocktails have the power to surprise so as always, enjoy..

Check out the 3 EASY Cocktails: Rum Special HERE,
the Gin Special HERE,
the Whiskey Special HERE,
and the Tequila Special HERE

For the full list of cocktails, go HERE.

The Old Classic, named so for vodka's Russian roots, and the dark appearance of the mix. This a cocktail with many known variations, some of which I'll mention after the original recipe.

Required Ingredients;

• Vodka
• Kahlua, Tia Maria, or any other Coffee Liqueur
• Ice

Fill your Boston Glass with ice and measure in all the ingredients as follows;

1. 5 Parts Vodka
2. 2 Parts Coffee Liqueur

Firmly attach your Shaker to your Boston Glass and shake.

Fill an Old Fashioned Glass with Ice Cubes and strain the mix from your Boston Glass into it.

Serve

Variations

Some people call for a less potent mix, the simplest addition to this cocktail is Coke, I'd recommend adding a measure of Coke equal to the amount of alcohol or more. To make this simply add the Coke after the original mix has been shaken, I recommend a taller glass for this.

A twist to the above variation is to add a Guinness head to the cocktail after pouring the Coke. I would only recommend trying this if you have the Guinness on tap because the amount used is so small that to open a can or bottle would seem wasteful for one cocktail. To do this you back-pour the Guinness onto the Cocktail for barely a second, you really are just looking to form a small head.

Perhaps the best known strain of the Black Russian is the White Russian, practically a new drink itself, it eases the bang of original mix by adding Half and Half. Just like when adding Coke to the recipe I recommend using a measure similar to the overall amount of alcohol. When mixing the ingredients in the Boston Glass, add your Half and Half and shake. A taller glass is needed again.

There are many different Romeo and Juliet recipes out there, most are in no way similar to the next, this is the one I know. Try it if you like the fruity cocktails.

Required Ingredients;

• Vodka
  
• Southern Comfort
• Peach Schnapps
• Orange Juice
• Strawberry Liqueur
• Ice

Fill your Boston Glass with ice and measure in all the ingredients as follows;

1. 2 Parts Vodka
2. 1 Part Southern Comfort
3. 1 Part Peach Schnapps
4. 1 Part Strawberry Liqueur
5. 5 Parts Orange Juice

Firmly attach your Shaker to your Boston Glass and shake well for 3 seconds.

Fill a Highball Glass with Ice and strain the mix from your Boston Glass into it.

Garnish with a peach slice.

Serve with a straw

Variations

If Peach Schnapps isn't your thing, try using Southern Comfort instead.

It follows the long standing tradition of bestowing questionable names upon cocktails, this drink probably won't have the advertised effect, but that shouldn't come as a surprise. For those of you were hoping to cream your jeans, you could always just spill it on yourself. Do it NOW!!!

Ingredients;

• Vodka
• Kahlua (Or Coffee Liqueur)
• Baileys Irish Cream
• Half and Half (Milk will do)
• Ice

Method -

Fill your Boston Glass with ice and measure in all the ingredients as follows;

• 3 Parts Vodka
• 1 Part Kahlua
• 1 Part Baileys
• 5 Parts Milk

Firmly attach your Shaker to your Boston Glass and shake well for 3 seconds.

Strain the mix into a cocktail glass with ice

Serve with a straw

I have other Vodka recipes for you to try! Here's the list and where to find them...

Sex on the Beach and Woo Woo are HERE

Baileys Heaven and Baileys Grasshopper are HERE

Cosmopolitan and Long Island Iced Tea are HERE

Each mix is designed to make one cocktail, though it can make as many as you want really, just bear in mind that if there are 7 parts in one mix, and only 5 in another, they are both designed to fill a glass the same way. If this isn't described well or clear enough I'll gladly answer any questions.

I hope you get the chance to try these mixes, I have had them all and I would drink any of them (and their variations). Comments and questions are always welcome, for now, sláinte!

Tom Caton