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RECIPE

The best cocktail recipes — according to bartenders

Titan Sky Barat at Meldrum House near Aberdeen shares its Cyprus-inspired kiwi cocktail

The Kiwido was created by Titan Sky Bar at Meldrum House near Aberdeen
The Kiwido was created by Titan Sky Bar at Meldrum House near Aberdeen
The Times

We love a cocktail at Alba, so we’ve asked mixologists from across Scotland to share the recipe for their signature drink. We’ll update the list regularly, so if you’re a cocktail fan, make sure you save this page. And please let us know if you’ve come across any bars or drinks worth shouting about in the comments section below. We’ll check them out ourselves, and add the best of them to our list. Slainte mhath!

Drink of the week: Kiwido

by Titan Sky Bar at Meldrum House hotel, near Aberdeen

“This cocktail is inspired by my grandma’s garden in Cyprus,” says Ross Cunningham from Titan Sky Bar at Meldrum House. “The ingredients I’ve chosen really remind me of the fresh herbs, flowers and sweet fruits you’ll find there. It makes me think of her and peaceful afternoons surrounded by nature.”

Ingredients

• 1 whole kiwi
• 40ml Absolut Elyx premium vodka
• 15ml lavender syrup
• 25ml apple juice
• 2 drops lavender bitters

Method

1. Peel the kiwi and cut it into chunks, then muddle (crush) them in a glass to release the juice.

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2. Put the muddled kiwi along with all the other ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake for 20-30 seconds.

3. Strain into a rocks glass and add an ice cube. Garnish with slices of peeled kiwi.

Meldrum House review: Welcome to the pleasure domes, where dinner is served with bubbles

Cocktail on a side table.
The Dark Beira is inspired by the goddess of winter in Scottish folklore

Dark Beira

by Beira restaurant at the AC Hotel, Inverness

“This cocktail is my favourite,” says Carola Leese, a mixologist at Beira, the AC Hotel’s restaurant on the bank of the River Ness. Inspired by Beira, the goddess of winter in Scottish folklore, the drink offers a balanced blend of smoke and spice, with sharp notes from the lemon offset by sugary syrup. “I love that the ingredients mirror Beira’s duality,” Leese says. “You get both her fierce sharpness and sweet softness — mirroring how her strength sculpts and nurtures the land.”

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Ingredients

• 50ml Tomatin Legacy whisky
• 25ml Kraken rum
• 15ml lemon juice
• 25ml sugar syrup
• Lemon peel, to garnish

Method

1. Combine all the liquid ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice.

2. Shake then double strain into an old-fashioned glass filled with ice. Garnish with the lemon peel.

Two cocktails garnished with a cherry and lemon twist.
The Noble’s Martinez swaps curacao for orange gin

The Martinez

by the Noble, Glasgow

“The Martinez is an age-old classic,” says Ewan Angus, who created this strong but smooth cocktail for the Noble, a new addition to Bothwell Street’s pub scene. “We swap curacao for orange gin and add a small hit of peach bitters and agave or honey to tie it all together.”

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Ingredients

• 40ml Malfy Gin Con Arancia
• 30ml Lillet Rosé
• 10ml agave or runny honey
• 2 drops peach bitters
• 1 maraschino cherry or a twist of lemon peel, to garnish

Method

1. Combine all the liquid ingredients in a mixing glass. Fill to the brim with ice and stir for 25-30 seconds until ice cold and slightly diluted.

2. Strain into a chilled coupe or Nick and Nora glass and garnish with the cherry or lemon peel.

Bartender making a Fingal Violet Kiss cocktail.
Matty Tomaszewski created the Violet Kiss to have luscious berry flavours to suit February 14

Violet kiss

by Fingal hotel, Edinburgh

“I wanted to make something with luscious berry flavours for Valentine’s Day,” says Matty Tomaszewski, the sommelier at the floating Fingal hotel. “You get a zesty, fruity hit from the vodka, smooth berry notes from the liqueurs, and sweetness from the syrup and pineapple juice. We serve it with violet and cassis macarons, made by our pastry chefs.”

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Fingal hotel, Edinburgh review — indulgence and nostalgia in Leith

Ingredients

• 35ml Belvedere blackberry and lemongrass vodka
• 15ml creme de cassis
• 10ml Chambord
• 5ml gomme syrup
• 75ml pineapple juice

Method

1. Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker and dry shake.

2. Add ice and shake again.

3. Fine strain into a Nick and Nora glass.

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Bartender's hand placing a pink cocktail on a bar.
A dance in a glass: the Bolero from the Fife Arms
ALEXANDER BAXTER ALEXBAXTER.CO

The Bolero

by the Fife Arms, Braemar

“We call this one the Bolero because just as the dance combines tango, waltz and Latin, so the flavours in this drink intertwine as if dancing,” says Tomas Smazinas, the head bartender at the Fife Arms, who created this tart, silky, sour cocktail with the bar manager Skirmante Vosyliute.

Ingredients

• 30ml tonka tequila
• 10ml mezcal
• 25ml raspberry cordial
• 5ml Tio Pepe sherry
• Tonka bean dust, to garnish
• Raspberry dust, to garnish

Method

1. If you can’t get hold of tonka tequila, you can add half a teaspoon of vanilla extract to a bottle of tequila and leave to infuse overnight.

2. Add all the ingredients to a cocktail shaker and hard shake for about 20 seconds. Double strain into a chilled glass (we suggest a coupe, rocks or Nick and Nora).

3. Garnish with a sprinkle of tonka bean and raspberry dust.

It’s the best-looking hotel in the Highlands, but does the food match up?

Hawksmoor bar interior and a Praline Irish Coffee.
The Praline Irish Coffee from Hawksmoor in Edinburgh works just as well with Scotch as Irish whiskey

Praline Irish coffee

by Hawksmoor, Edinburgh

“Winter is the perfect excuse for any kind of boozy coffee,” says Liam Davy from Hawksmoor. “This Irish coffee riff uses an Irish whiskey — but feel free to play around with a good Scottish single malt. A richer-style blend or a young single malt work beautifully here, just nothing too smoky.”

Ingredients

• 2 tsp demerara sugar
• 250ml double cream
• 25g praline paste (or Nutella)
• A shot of hot coffee
• 25ml Irish whiskey
• Pinch of sea salt
• 10ml Frangelico hazelnut liqueur

Method

1. Dissolve the sugar in 1 teaspoon of hot water to make 15ml syrup, chill.

2. Whisk together the cream and praline paste, chill.

3. Warm a heatproof glass with boiling water, then discard the water. Add the syrup, coffee, whiskey, salt and liqueur, leaving 1cm at the top for some of the cream.

4. Float the praline cream slowly on top — you will have more than you need, so keep the rest in the fridge for another drink.

Cocktail and bar interior.
Not just a cocktail: the Crime Scene is also a clue in Somewhere by Nico’s murder mystery experience

The Crime Scene

by Somewhere by Nico, Edinburgh andGlasgow

“The key to this light and refreshing cocktail is to pour the cherry syrup in first and keep the glass nice and cold, so the syrup lies undisturbed at the bottom of the glass when you add the rest of the ingredients,” says Jack McGhee, bar manager at Somewhere by Nico. The bar, which opened branches in Glasgow and Edinburgh in 2024, changes its menu every six weeks. The Crime Scene is part of the Murder on the Midnight Express menu, where the cocktails themselves act as clues in an immersive two-hour cocktail tasting/murder mystery experience.

Ingredients

• 10ml maraschino cherry syrup
• 15ml maraschino liqueur
• 15ml RinQuinQuin peach aperitif
• A splash of prosecco

Method

1. Add ice to a chilled martini glass and pour in the cherry syrup.

2. Add the liqueur and RinQuinQuin then gently top with prosecco, taking care not to disturb the syrup at the bottom.

3. Once served, you can stir the syrup at the bottom into the drink, depending on how sweet you like it.

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a man wearing a green apron that says sotto on it
Watch out for Calabrian chilli flakes if you don’t like it hot, says James Clark, the owner of Sotto
CHRISTINA LEAHY

Calabrian margarita

by Sotto, Edinburgh

“This is a simple, classic cocktail with a southern Italian twist,” says James Clark, the owner of Sotto, a new enoteca and trattoria that opened in Stockbridge in October. “Try to get the bergamot from an Italian deli if you can — they’re much more floral than limes. Calabrian chilli flakes are hot, so you can adjust to your taste.”

Ingredients

• Calabrian chilli flakes
• Salt
• 50ml tequila,
• 25ml Italicus bergamot liqueur
• 12.5ml bergamot juice
• 12.5ml lime juice
• A small splash of simple sugar syrup
• A bergamot slice, to garnish

Method

1. Chill a martini glass. Grind some chilli flakes (enough to coat the rim of the glass) with some salt with a pestle and mortar to a fine powder. Coat the rim of the glass with some lime juice and dip into the chilli salt.

2. Add the liquid ingredients to a shaker with ice, shake hard then double strain into the glass. Garnish with a slice of Bergamot.

Read Chitra Ramaswamy’s review of Sotto

a glass of champagne sits on a table next to a bar
The rhubarb rose cocktail has a flavour profile that will refresh visitors to Newhall Mains’ bar

Rhubarb and rose cocktail

by Newhall Mains, nr Dingwall

“The combination of rhubarb and ginger brings a unique tartness that is balanced by the sweetness of the sugar cube and the floral notes from rose water,” says Rebecca Darden from Newhall Mains hotel on the Black Isle. “It creates a really complex and refreshing flavour profile.”

Read Jeremy Watson’s review of Newhall Mains

Ingredients

• 1 sugar cube
• 25ml Edinburgh Gin’s Rhubarb & Ginger Liqueur
• 2 sprays of rose water
• Champagne (to top up)

Method

1. Add the sugar cube to a glass, pour in the gin liqueur to dissolve the sugar. Add two sprays of rose water.

2. Top up the mixture with champagne, stir gently to combine, without losing too much carbonation from the champagne.

a man in a kilt stands on a ladder next to a glass of alcohol
The Bobby Burns is the creation of Cameron Ewen, the bar manager at Scotch at the Balmoral Hotel

Bobby Burns

by Scotch at the Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh

“I use Benedictine in this twist on a classic Rob Roy,” says Cameron Ewen from Scotch, the whisky bar at the Balmoral Hotel. “It complements the complex nature of Johnnie Walker Black Label. The subtle smoke found in Black Label adds intrigue, I always think.”

Ingredients

• 45ml Johnnie Walker Black Label whisky
• 45ml Italian vermouth
• 7.5ml Benedictine DOM liqueur
• Twist of lemon zest, to garnish

Method

1. Fill a mixing glass with ice and add the whisky, vermouth and liqueur.

2. Stir it all together, strain into a cocktail glass and add a twist of lemon zest.

a man in a chef 's uniform is next to a glass of liquid
Dean Banks says drinking his elderflower fizz is like sipping champagne

Elderflower fizz

by Dulse, Edinburgh

“This drink highlights one of my favourite ingredients, elderflower,” says Dean Banks from the Edinburgh restaurant Dulse. “Its crisp, floral notes bring a touch of warmth to autumn gatherings. It’s light, bubbly and gives you that luxurious feeling, much like sipping champagne.” This recipe requires a bit of planning in advance, since a week of steeping is needed to get a full elderflower flavour.

Ingredients

• 400g sugar
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1g yeast
• 10 heads of elderflower

Method

1. Combine 800ml water with the sugar, lemon zest and juice in a large saucepan. Bring to the boil. Allow to cool, then mix in 1.2L water and the yeast.

2. Add to a sterilised container, mix with the elderflower heads and leave in a dark place at room temperature for 7 days.

3. Strain then pour into sterilised bottles. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

Read Chitra Ramaswamy’s review of Dulse

a man in a plaid suit is shaking a cocktail
Mitch Murray from the Kylesku Hotel and his cocktail, Beyond the Tea

Beyond the Tea

by Kylesku Hotel, Sutherland

“This is my favourite creation of all time,” says Mitch Murray, the bar manager at the lochside Kylesku Hotel. “It blends floral notes of lavender and the tried-and-tested, robust citrus flavours of Earl Grey tea.”

Ingredients

• 50ml vodka
• 35ml sugar syrup
• 2-3 heaped tsp loose-leaf Earl Grey tea and dried lavender petals, plus extra to garnish
• 20ml lemon juice
• 20ml egg white

Method

1. Infuse the vodka and syrup for 2-3 hours with the tea and lavender petals.

2. Use a jigger to add the infused vodka and syrup to a cocktail shaker. Add the lemon juice, egg white and a generous serving of ice. Shake vigorously.

3. Double strain into the top half of the shaker and ditch the ice. Shake once more.

4. Double strain into a coupe glass and garnish with a line of Earl Grey tea and lavender petals.

a man stands behind a bar next to a drink that says alma de madrid
High-quality ingredients are the way to make a margarita stand out, says Rory Cox from the Prancing Stag

Peach margarita

by the Prancing Stag, Glasgow

“This fruity margarita is inspired by the fizzy peach sweets I used to get from the hospital shop when I visited my granddad as a wee boy,” says Rory Cox from the Prancing Stag restaurant in Jordanhill. “Margaritas are one of the most popular cocktails in the world and they lend themselves to lots of variations. There’s nothing in the way of mixer, so choosing high-quality ingredients is what makes the cocktail stand out. The Bandero tequila is beautifully smooth, and the peach liqueur is a French one made from vineyard peaches that smells a bit like those fizzy peach sweets.”

Ingredients

• 25ml Giffard Pêche de Vigne liqueur
• 50ml Bandero Tequila Blanco
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 tsp citric acid
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• Sprig of mint, to garnish
• Lime wedge, to garnish

Method

1. Add the liqueur, tequila and lime juice to a shaker with ice and shake.

2. Rim a rocks glass with some liqueur, then dip it in a mixture of the citric acid and sugar.

3. Fill a glass with ice and double strain the liquid into it. Garnish with a sprig of mint and a wedge of lime.

a bartender pours a drink into a glass next to a can of ginger beer
Danny Mcmanus from the alcohol-free brewery Jump Ship

Jump Ship punch

By Jump Ship Brewing

Created by Danny Mcmanus, a mixologist at the dedicated alcohol-free brewery Jump Ship, this refreshing mocktail balances zesty clementine and lime juice with herbal thyme syrup and crisp fruity notes from Jump Ship’s Gooseberry Gose.

Ingredients

• 15ml lime juice
• 30ml clementine juice
• 10ml Lyre’s Non-alcoholic Italian Spritz
• 50ml Jump Ship Gooseberry Gose
• Lime slice and a sprig of thyme, to garnish

For the thyme syrup (needs steeping overnight)

• 200g caster sugar
• 10g fresh thyme

Method

1. Mix the sugar and thyme in 200ml boiling water until the sugar is dissolved, leave to steep overnight.
2. Add the rest of the liquid ingredients and 15ml of the thyme syrup to a wine glass with ice, garnish with the lime slice and thyme sprig.

a bartender wearing an apron with pandas on it
Iain McPherson from Panda & Sons says his Wilderness cocktail is “as if Ribena and red wine joined forces”

Wilderness

By Panda & Sons, Edinburgh

Fresh from being crowned winner of the Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award as part of the World’s 50 Best Bars, Iain McPherson shares this recipe from his buzzy New Town speakeasy, Panda & Sons.

“The key ingredient here is Aelder Elixir, a liqueur made by Buck & Birch in East Lothian mixing wild elderberries, whisky and wild botanicals,” McPherson says. “I add it here for its lovely berry yet tannic notes — it’s as if Ribena and red wine joined forces. The sherry gives it a lovely long finish, going side by side with the maple.”

Ingredients

• 20ml Makers Mark
• 15ml Aelder Elixir
• 20ml manzanilla sherry
• 15ml lemon juice
• 15ml maple syrup
• Soda water, to top up
• 1 blackberry

Method

1. Add the liquid ingredients except the soda water to a high-ball glass.
2. Add ice and top up with soda water.
3. Give a gentle stir to mix and garnish with the blackberry on a skewer.

two men are smiling next to a glass of alcohol with a cherry in it
The Downstair’s at Betty’s team Matt Colagiuri and Stefan Creran have created a twist on the El Capitán

El Capitán

By Downstairs at Betty’s, Edinburgh

“I came up with this recipe myself,” says Stefan Creran, general manager at Downstairs at Betty’s, a new cocktail and piano bar on Charlotte Lane. “It is a blend of an El Capitán to represent my Chilean roots, and a classic Manhattan, a nod to my business partner Matt Colagiuri.”

Ingredients

• 25ml Ragtime Rye whisky
• 10ml Aba pisco
• 10ml Lucky Liqueurs Smoky Cherry
• 10ml Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
• 3 dashes saline
• Cherry bitters
• Black walnut bitters
• 1 cherry, frozen, to garnish

Method

1. Add the whisky, pisco, smoky cherry, vermouth and saline to a mixing glass, stir for 15-20 seconds until ice cold and slightly diluted.
2. Strain into a Nick and Nora or cocktail coupe, mist the glass with 1 spray of cherry bitters and 1 spray of black walnut bitters.
3. Garnish with a frozen cherry.

a bottle of sonas gin sits next to a glass of it
Meadowsweet, tart cranberry and elderflower are a dream accompaniment to Sonas gin

Sonas gin fix

by Knipoch House hotel nr Oban

This refreshing summer drink uses Sonas gin, made with apples, kelp, hawthorn berries and meadowsweet from the shores and gardens at Knipoch’s sister hotels on Skye. “Enhanced by the delicate flavour of elderflower and tart cranberry,” says Knipoch’s Cameron Campbell, “it transports you to perfect summer days on the Isle of Skye.”

Ingredients

• 50ml Sonas gin
• 12.5ml elderflower cordial
• 12.5ml lime juice
• 50ml cranberry juice
• 50ml apple juice
• 2 cucumber slices
• 1 sprig mint

Method

1. Add all ingredients to a shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously.
2. Pour into a chilled glass and garnish with two cucumber slices and a sprig of mint.

a bottle of the guard bridge next to a martini glass
The Guard Bridge banana sour is a “smooth, rich, nostalgic summer serve”

Guard Bridge banana sour

By Eden Mill distillery near St Andrews

“Our beautiful banana sour is reminiscent of foam banana sweets,” says Hannah Ingram from Eden Mill, the Fife distillery that runs cocktail masterclasses at the Huxley bar in Edinburgh. “The sweetness of the banana syrup blends wonderfully with the whisky, and there’s a touch of tartness from the lemon juice, plus a pleasing mouthfeel from the foam. It all culminates in a smooth, rich, nostalgic summer serve.”

Ingredients

• 50ml The Guard Bridge blended whisky
• 35ml Monin banana syrup
• 20ml lemon juice
• 1 egg white or foamer
• Dried banana chips, to garnish

Method

1. Add all the ingredients (except the banana chips) into a shaker and shake.
2. Open the shaker, fill it with ice then shake again until the outside is cold.
3. Strain into a Nick and Nora glass and garnish with a dried banana chip.

a bottle of the long and short of it sits on a table
Borders Distillery like to add a dollop of raspberry jam to their whisky-based cocktail for sweetness

That’s My Jam

By Borders Distillery, Hawick

“This cocktail makes me think of juicy jam-filled doughnuts,” says its creator, Olivia Pattison, from Borders Distillery in Hawick. “Based on our WS:02 blended Scotch whisky, we add a dollop of raspberry jam to create a lovely summer drink that bursts with frothy, fruity sweetness.”

Ingredients

• 50ml The Long & Short of It
• 20ml lemon juice
• 10ml ruby port
• 10ml grenadine
• Spoonful raspberry jam
• Egg white
• Ice

Method

1. Place all ingredients except ice into cocktail shaker and dry shake hard.
2. Now add ice and shake again. Strain into a chilled coupe.

a bar with a clock and a glass of orange juice
Celantano’s tequila-twist on a negroni

White tequila negroni

By Celantano’s, Glasgow

Celentano’s mixologists Anna Parker and Erin Calvin make their own liqueurs and cordials for their cocktails, using herbs grown in the restaurant garden and honey from bees kept in their own courtyard. The good news is you can just use a shop-bought vermouth if making your own from wine, spices and orange peel feels like too much bother. If you are buying vermouth, choose one on the dryer side.

Ingredients

• 50ml Cazcabel tequila
• 37.5ml dry white vermouth
• Fresh orange peel
• Slice of orange, to garnish

Method

• Add the tequila and white vermouth to a mixing glass or tin.
• Twist the orange peel over a the glass, expressing its oils into the liquid. Fill to the brim with ice and stir with a bar spoon for 30-45 seconds until icy cold and slightly diluted.
• Strain into a rocks glass, over one large ice cube. Garnish with the slice of orange.

a bartender prepares a drink in front of a sign that says bar
Iona Buick from Isle of Bute Distillery making a Bute martini

Bute martini

by Isle of Bute Distillery, Rothesay

“Our Oyster Gin makes the perfect base for this martini,” says Iona Buick from Isle of Bute Distillery in Rothesay. “To make the gin, we charge our still with the shells of wild oysters — it creates a delicate but distinctive maritime essence. So this martini pairs really well with seafood.”

Ingredients

• 50ml Isle of Bute Oyster Gin
• 12.5ml fino sherry
• Pinch of salt

Method

1. Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with ice cubes and stir gently to combine.
2. Finely strain into a chilled martini glass of your choice.

a bar with a sign that says blogar ginimets
The St Kilda sour at Rascal balances sweetness and acidity

The St Kilda sour

by Rascal, Glasgow

“The combination of spirit, lime and sugar is a classic,” says Jack Cain at Rascal, a buzzing new cocktail bar in the West End of Glasgow. “The balance of sweetness and acidity is the foundation of any good cocktail. Isle of Harris Gin’s flavour profile of juniper, citrus and dry maritime notes is accentuated by the tart lime juice and balanced by sweet strawberry, making a well-rounded and delicious cocktail.

“The name itself is inspired by a tradition in St Kilda, where men who wished to marry would prove their worthiness by walking to the edge of the Lover’s Stone. There, high on a cliff edge, they would have to balance on one leg to prove their ability to support their future wife.”

Ingredients

• 50ml Harris gin
• 25ml fresh lime juice
• 25ml strawberry syrup
• 1 egg white

Method

1. Separate egg white into the shaker then add all other ingredients.
2. Shake hard without ice to emulsify egg white, then fill shaker to the top with ice and shake hard for 15 seconds.
3. Double strain into a chilled coupe or Nick and Nora glass. Garnish with a fresh strawberry slice on the rim.

a man in a black shirt with a tattoo on his arm sits next to a glass of green liquid
Douglas Murray, the bar manager at Lady Libertine, and the tonka bean-infused Grasshopper

The Grasshopper

by Lady Libertine, Edinburgh

Douglas Murray, the bar manager at Lady Libertine, infuses this creamy cocktail with a dash of cognac. “It has a tantalising hint of fruitiness,” he says. “And the tonka beans in the double cream complements the boozy ice cream flavours beautifully.”

Makes 2

Ingredients

• 10g tonka beans
• 100ml sugar syrup
• 45ml double cream
• 30ml crème de menthe
• 50ml Rémy Martin VSOP cognac
• 30ml crème de cacao
• 4 dashes of bitters
• Mint leaves and grated dark mint chocolate, to garnish

Method

1. Grate the tonka beans into the sugar syrup in a saucepan, then heat gently so it steeps, then strain and cool.
2. Stir 15ml tonka-infused syrup into the double cream, then mix this and all the other liquid ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice, shake hard and double strain into rocks glasses.
3. Garnish with the mint and a sprinkle of chocolate.

a woman is pouring a drink into a glass with raspberries on top
Holyrood Distillery’s mixologist Elsie Cinnamond making a Clover Club cocktail

Clover Club

by Holyrood Distillery, Edinburgh

“Texture is key to this cocktail,” says Holyrood Distillery’s mixologist, Elsie Cinnamond. “Egg white makes it frothy and our Height of Arrows gin uses beeswax at distillation, which adds a silky creaminess.

“Not all recipes call for dry vermouth but we included it as it adds dimension and layers to a drink that could easily be overwhelmed by raspberry. It brings out the complex herbal notes of the juniper berry; highlighting the beautiful flavours of our classic gin.”

Ingredients

• 45ml Height of Arrows gin
• 15ml dry vermouth
• 25ml lemon juice
• 25ml raspberry syrup
• 3-4 drops of cocktail foamer or 1 egg white or 20ml aquafaba (chickpea water)
• Raspberries, to garnish

Method

1. Dry shake (shake without ice) all the liquid ingredients for about 10 seconds to emulsify the foaming agent.
2. Once frothy, add ice to the shaker and shake again to chill and dilute.
3. Fine strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with a few raspberries.

a bartender pours a drink into a glass with whipped cream
The Ruma co-founder Steven Aiken making the Dominicana

The Dominicana

By Ruma, Edinburgh

This rum cocktail recipe was created by Sasha Petraske, the owner of Milk & Honey bar in New York, one of the first speakeasy-style cocktail bars now seen in hipster hoods the world over.

“We had to have it on our launch menu,” says Steven Aitken, who with co-founder Jamie Shields has opened Ruma, a specialist rum bar on Broughton Street, Edinburgh. “We pair delicious Dominican rum with coffee liqueur made in Scotland. We top it with an indulgent layer of velvety cream. It’s simple but elegant, a perfect rum alternative to an espresso martini.”

Ingredients

• 45ml Dominican rum
• 45ml Cross Brew coffee liqueur
• Oat cream, whipped
• A few shavings of 70 per cent dark chocolate

Method

1. Shake the rum and coffee liqueur with ice and double strain into a coupe glass.
2. Top with whipped oat cream and sprinkle with shaved chocolate.

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a drink in a glass next to a picture of a room
“It’s a great cocktail to drink with dessert — or even instead of it”, says Sarah Peel from the Cromlix hotel

Chocolate and orange espresso martini

By Cromlix hotel, Dunblane

The Scotland the Best author Peter Irvine reckons Cromlix has the best hotel art in Scotland. We reckon the drinks ain’t bad either, especially its take on an espresso martini, which Cromlix’s sommelier and beverage manager, Sarah Peel, garnishes with orange zest and chocolate popping candy. “I love the aroma of the fresh zest and the fun of the crackle. It’s a great cocktail to drink with dessert — or even instead of it.”

Ingredients

• 25ml dark crème de cacao
• 25ml Kahlúa or coffee liqueur
• 25ml Grand Marnier
• 1 double shot of espresso coffee
• Orange zest and chocolate popping candy, to garnish

Method

1. Add the liquid ingredients to a boston glass or shaker. Add ice and shake until chilled (30 to 60 seconds).
2. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with the orange zest and a sprinkle of popping candy.

a bar in a restaurant with a green counter top
The Lady Libertine

Ingredients

• 50ml Courvoisier VSOP cognac
• 25ml vermouth
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• A strip of orange zest, to garnish

Method

1. Add the cognac, vermouth and bitters to a glass. Give it a nice long stir and strain into a chilled, but preferably frozen, coupette glass.
2. Gently twist the orange zest to express the oils over the drink, then use it to garnish.

a bottle of buckfast sits next to a cup of tea
The Buckfast mulled cider is a real winter warmer

Buckfast mulled cider

By Café Cùil, Skye

Not a cocktail, rather a winter warmer from Clare Coghill, the head chef at Café Cùil, which sits at the head of Loch Harport in the shadow of Skye’s Cuillin Hills. “I was creating my own mulled cider at home, and didn’t have any port or red wine,” she says. “So I reached for the next best thing — Buckfast!”

“It’s not just a drink to be enjoyed in our younger drinks years,” Coghill says. “Its sweet, almost medicinal flavour pairs perfectly with the winter spices. It’s a great drink to take with you in a flask at this time of year.”

Clare Coghill from Café Cùil makes a Buckfast mulled cider


Serves 6

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• ½ tbsp cloves
• 1 star anise
• 2 x 440ml cans of dry cider
• ½ orange, plus slices, to garnish
• 150ml Buckfast Tonic Wine

Method

1. Place a heavy-bottomed pan on the hob over a medium heat. Add the sugar and spices and warm until the sugar begins to caramelise and melt.
2. Add the cider and orange, simmer for a few minutes.
3. Pour into a jug or teapot, top with the Buckfast and stir. Serve in mugs, or pour into a flask to take somewhere.

a can of irish bru sits next to a glass of iced tea
The Bru and Stormy — only available in Glasgow
TURTLE BAY

Bru & Stormy

By Turtle Bay, Glasgow

“What drink could better marry Caribbean flair with the spirit of Glasgow than a rum cocktail with an Irn-Bru mixer?” says Ben Hibbard, the marketing director at the Caribbean-inspired Turtle Bay chain, which has opened a fun restaurant on the corner of Hope Street and St Vincent Street.

“We found that the hint of ginger you get in Irn-Bru, along with its sweet, tangy flavour, works really well with common Caribbean ingredients,” Hibbard says. “Pairing Irn-Bru with a smooth, spiced rum like RedLeg cuts the sweetness, while the addition of falernum — a syrup made with ginger, lime, almond and cloves — brings a tropical twist that accentuates the citrus and spices.”

Ingredients

• 25ml RedLeg spiced rum
• 25ml falernum syrup
• About 200ml Irn-Bru
• 2 dashes of bitters
• A slice of lime, to garnish

Method

1. Add ice cubes to a highball glass with the rum and falernum syrup, and stir well with a bar spoon until the glass is cold to the touch.
2. Add ice cubes to the top of the glass and top up with Irn-Bru.
3. Add the bitters, garnish with a lime slice, and serve with a straw.

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