Too complicated, I don't get it
Cocktails Mechanics · The Maker's Approach
You walk into a bar wanting your usual, the cocktail you always order. But the bartender suggests you try something new.
You don't want to take the risk, but he insists. He says it's the best twist on a Margarita and rattles off five or six ingredients, of which you catch only two, tequila and lime. Thirty seconds later there's a clear cocktail in front of you. You take a sip. A bit sour, slightly sweet, a touch strong, but you can't tell what it is. A Margarita is an honest, readable drink. What's in front of you is something else entirely.
This is a clear example of how not to do it. And I know it not just as an observer, I've been through it myself.
I've been through it myself
I once made a twist on a Martini where I tried to fit two different vermouths, a liqueur and a bitter tincture into one glass. It felt like the more interesting and layered the build, the better the result. It wasn't. What you end up with is mush: you drink it and you understand neither what it is nor what you're supposed to feel.
A good counterexample is the Negroni. Three ingredients, seemingly basic. But that simplicity is only on the surface. Campari brings dozens of unique botanicals, gin brings its own complex aromatics, vermouth brings its own. And it all comes together so well that it works perfectly: bitter, sweet, drinkable, predictable. You drink it and it just goes down right.
How to build a cocktail: five simple but important steps
When you work on your own original cocktail, the order matters. Here's the one I follow when I take on a new drink.
Step 1
The idea
Always start with the idea. What do you actually want to make? You don't need to improvise and cook off the cuff. You have time to think it through to the smallest detail. For example: I want to make a twist on a Martini, an inverted, dry Martini, a modern low-alcohol version. Once you have the idea, everything else gets easier.
Step 2
The reference
What are you building on? Which classic template is closest to what you want to create? Martini, Sour, Negroni, Old Fashioned, Last Word, those are your templates. Pick a starting point and build your cocktail out from it. It's far simpler and clearer that way.
Step 3
The ingredients
Build the recipe around the structure of your reference. Swap bourbon for tequila, tequila for mezcal, split the base or leave it as is. The main rule here is simple: the ingredients have to be complementary. They shouldn't fight or mask each other, only support and open each other up.
Step 4
The techniques
Once the recipe is set, think about modifications: tinctures, homemade syrups, cordials, shrubs, carbonation. These are all useful tools, but each one has to justify its place in the glass.
Step 5
The execution
You've worked it all out on paper: the idea is there, the reference is there, the ingredients and techniques are set. Now comes execution, balancing, adjusting, the final build. This is where the cocktail either comes together or it doesn't.
The main question
Through all of these steps, hold one simple thought in your head. Ask yourself: if I remove this ingredient, does the cocktail change? If it doesn't, take it out. If it does, and the change is critical, keep it and stand behind its place.
The guest should taste two or three core flavours that open up both together and on their own. No mush. No eighth ingredient that gets lost in the noise, one you described on serving but the guest never actually felt.
Complex, multi-component cocktails exist, and sometimes they're justified. But more often it's a competition thing, made by bartenders for other bartenders. In reality the guest comes to drink something tasty and clear. Your job is to give them exactly that.
Idea. Reference. Ingredients. Techniques. Execution.