Redcurrant margarita

Before you start

Bottled cocktail know-how
Most – but not all – cocktails can be mixed in advance. Here are some things to keep in mind.

Take it with a pinch of salt: You’ll notice a tiny amount of salt in this recipe. It’s a trick I picked up from a master mixologist a few years ago that I swear by. Just like in food, salt opens up the palate to make your cocktail taste more of itself (without tasting salty). It’s a subtle yet effortless improvement – and a neat talking point.

Enjoy the water feature: Cocktails are shaken or served with plenty of ice not only to cool them down, but also to dilute the mixture with >a little water. This tempers the harshness of the alcohol, allowing you to taste the cocktail more. If you’re pre-mixing cocktails designed to be served in glasses without ice, you need to add some water to account for the dilution.

Stay chilled: This pre-mixed cocktail can be kept in the freezer, meaning you can make it ahead of time and they’ll be perfectly chilled at all times. Alcohol doesn’t freeze, but if you have a higher concentration of non-alcoholic liquids in your cocktail (fruit juices or water to account for dilution, for example), they can become a little slushy. Don’t fret – a good shake of the container or bottle will break up the slush and remix the cocktail in an instant, ready to pour.

Master the golden ratio: The beauty of cocktails is that they’re easily scaled up – you just need to keep the ratios the same. This cocktail make enough for 10 drinks, but for bigger gatherings it can be doubled, tripled, quadrupled or more.