Get ready for World Cocktail Day with these fun, simple recipes

It's World Cocktail Day on May 13, and what better way to spend a sunny summer afternoon than sipping on some delicious cocktails.

Instead of heading out to brunch, give the crowds a miss and get the gang together at home for a cocktail-mixing session.


Or being the party early, and stir up some cocktails to go with your Saturday Cocktail Day eve dinner.

Old Fashioned

Ingredients
Grant's Family Reserve: 50 ml
Sugar cube soaked in bitters: 1
Orange peel: For garnish

Method
- Soak sugar cubes with bitters. Add to a mixing glass and muddle.
- Add ice with half of whisky and stir.
- Repeat and strain into glass over a single ice cube

Rob Roy

Ingredients
Grant's Family Reserve: 50 ml
Sweet Vermouth: 15 ml
Bitters: 1-4 dash
Maraschino Cherry: To garnish

Method
- Add whisky, vermouth and bitters to a mixing glass
- Add ice and stir
- Strain and garnish with a maraschino cherry

Blood and Sand

Ingredients
Grant's Family Reserve: 50 ml
Orange juice: 50 ml
Sweet vermouth: 45 ml
Maraschino cherry with teaspoon of juice

Method
- Add whisky, orange juice and vermouth to a shaker
- Add in a spoon of juice from the maraschino cherry jar
- Strain and garnish with a maraschino cherry


Hennessy-To

Ingredients
Hennessy Very Special: 60 ml
Fresh mint leaves: 6-8
Lime wedges: 4
Tender coconut water: 30 ml
Angostura bitters: 3-4 drops
Ginger ale: 30 ml
Sugar syrup: 15 ml
Crushed ice

Method
- Mix mint, bitters and sugar syrup. Squeeze in lime.
- Add Hennessy, crushed ice and mix.
- Top with coconut water and ginger ale.
- Garnish with a fresh mint sprig.


Hennessy Ginger Mule

Ingredients
Hennessy Very Special: 50 ml
Fresh lime juice: 20 ml
Ginger beer/ ginger ale: 100 ml

Method
- Pour Hennessy Very Special and lime juice into a copper mule mug.
- Add ice cubes and top with ginger beer/ginger ale.
- Stir with bar spoon. Garnish and serve.

(Recipes courtesy: Hennessy and Grant's)