go-to cocktail for young ladies

[wannabe chef]

I am a college student, therefore I often find myself in the company of young ladies, 21 lets say. I am wondering if anyone could throw out some cocktails that would really wow a such a young female. Looking through cocktail books can be overwhelming and I would like to have one or two drinks that I can craft that would really impress and be enjoyed. Anything from the simple to the extravagant, or one of each perhaps. Let me know what you guys think.

Thanks!

[weinoo]

Gin - can't go wrong with an Aviation, imo. The Pegu Club is another winner.

Rye - Try a Scoff Law Cocktail (1.5 rye, 1 dry vermouth, .75 lemon, .75 grenadine)

Real Margaritas and Daiquiris are hard to dislike, too.

[Chris Hennes]

I'd actually suggest Katie Loeb's Aviatrix rather than the Aviation: it's a bit sweeter, which goes over well with my guests. Replace half the maraschino in the aviation with St. Germain.

[Dakki]

Ladies appreciate my mojitos.

Or maybe it's my dashing good looks and witty conversation.

On balance, I think it's probably the mojitos.

[Kohai]

Aviation. Aviation. Aviation.

[KD1191]

Toby Maloney's Juliet & Romeo.

ETA: Maybe a Bee's Knees for ladies with a slightly less refined palate.

Edited September 15, 2010 by KD1191 (log)

[Tri2Cook]

Eben Freeman's Bazooka Bubblegum cocktail goes over well with the younger crowd... especially the ladies. Just for fun, I made a batch of the bubblegum vodka and used his recipe at a wedding reception and the college-age group, mostly the girls, cleaned it out in the first hour. It's not a super-sweet candy drink like the name implies, it's balanced pretty nicely by the lemon and lime juices, but it's still leaning to the sweet side which is usually popular with the crowd you're wanting to impress.

[jk1002]

I would stay away from the classic combinations to be honest. To me, many of the classics like an Aviation work best in small quantities before a meal. Cocktails today seem to something that is enjoyed all night long and many more modern recipes reflect that.

There is a recipe for a gin/cassis/lime/salt/simple syrup drink on athirstyspirit.com that in my house everyone loves. In the Danny Meyer cocktail book there are few good examples like this. You can also just look at restaurant menus and copy, looking at recipes in books you will get a feeling for what the ratios between spiritits, juices and bitters should be and then just wing it.

Cheers

JK

[Tri2Cook]

I think maybe the serious cocktail folks are forgetting what college party girl's actually tend to drink. If we're talking about some serious cocktail ladies, the classics are fine. Most college girls at the bar that don't drink beer are ordering the sweet drinks with the risque names. "And for me, a Screaming Orgasm On The Beach with extra sugar on the rim, YUM!"

[therippa]

I think it's important just to have something to serve them other than beer. Keeping a bottle of club soda, tonic water, vodka, and a couple limes around can go a long way. Also, keep a bottle of Martini & Rossi Asti Spumante in the fridge...they'll prefer it to real champagne because it's sweeter. $8/bottle on sale and it makes you appear classy.

[weinoo]

Actually, I think the way to impress the ladies (young or of a certain age) is to make a proper classic cocktail, just as I have for many a friend, female and male.

Then, they take a sip of an Aviation, for example, and realize that everything they thought they knew about cocktails (screaming orgasms, etc.) should be thrown out the window. You'd be surprised if you knew how many people I've converted to Manhattans.

I mean, if someone doesn't like a Pegu Club or an aviation, they don't deserve to be made a cocktail - just hand them a bottle of Smirnoff and a bottle of cranberry juice and let them go to town.

[Tri2Cook]

I mean, if someone doesn't like a Pegu Club or an aviation, they don't deserve to be made a cocktail - just hand them a bottle of Smirnoff and a bottle of cranberry juice and let them go to town.

I understand where you're coming from but he didn't say he wanted to teach, culture or convert, he said he wanted to "wow". I'm not saying early 20-something women don't or won't appreciate a well made classic cocktail, I'm saying that the majority of them are unlikely to go for those when they're drinking with their friends. He can mix a couple of aviations if he has a young lady over for a visit and it's very possible she'll enjoy it. But if he asks her if she'd like another aviation or another bubblegum, I know which answer I'd put my money on 95% of the time. Most women aren't impressed because you can make them something cool, they're impressed if you can make them something they like.

[Chris Amirault]

If I may suggest: Dale DeGroff's books are a treasure trove of customer-friendly libations, and his sour ratio (2 booze, 1 sweet, 3/4 sour) is a good base for experimenting. In addition, few collegians, I suspect, have ever had a good Sidecar:

2 oz. brandy

1 oz. Cointreau

3/4 oz fresh lemon juice

You can do the sugar rim and make either cute (sweetie) or winky-winky (rimming) jokes, depending on the mood.

[weinoo]

Some of us (okay, maybe me) wish we could have the problems of wannabe chef.

[wannabe chef]

Tri2cook you are exactly right, I think you understand very well what I want to do.

I want to make a drink for a girl and her to think wow, this is the best thing I have ever had outside of the ubertrendy bars that me an my friends go to. I would be happy to replicate any of the popular girly drinks at bars.

I have found that girls at this age don't really want something to appreciate-although I do- they want something to blow them away with sweetness or fruitiness. Basically sensual over subtle.

So let me rephrase this way, while I have a decent stock of liquor, I can't have everything. I am looking for suggestions for a signature girly sweetish drink that a young girl would order at a trendy expensive bar and rave about. One which I can buy the stuff for and

make over and over again with positive results every time.

As my first post on egullet I must say that I am overwhelmed with the awesome responses and all have so far been extremely helpful.

Thanks! and keep them coming!

[thirtyoneknots]

While I understand the need to please your lady friends, wouldn't it also be nice if the two of you could have the same drink? And since you say you like quality drinks, this would implicitly exclude the prototypical "girlie" drinks (I hate the label), which are often sorely lacking in quality or culinary merit. What if, however, there were a drink that was both novice friendly, unique in flavor, and interesting to drink? Think floral ingredients like St. Germaine and Dolin Blanc. Simple gin sours (esp with a citrusy gin like Plymouth) made with St. Germaine are impossible to dislike and since there's no "Elderflower Pucker" (yet) it is likely to be a completely new flavor sensation for her. When making drinks for cocktail novices of either sex I find that this is a safe route to not only show them how different a cocktail can be from anything they've ever had before, but also to introduce them to the idea that flavor is a good thing and they should seek it out in spirit choices.

Almost 6 years ago I started exploring cocktail possibilities with a beautiful young lady I'd recently met. In 17 days we'll be wed. She's now a Whiskey Girl at heart though, so don't write off the ladies' tastes in 'real' booze.

[LindaK]

This topic is making me smile. It has been too many years since my college days, but I remember very well what I liked in the way of cocktails during those years: high alcohol content, smooth, tasty, fun. Not so sweet that more than one would make me, um, ill.

One of my favorite bars at the time specialized in "champagne" cocktails. Asti, proscecco, I don't know what sparkling wine they used, but they were delicious, fun, and seemed special and sophisticated--how often do college students drink "champagne"? I probably would have been wowed by a simple kir royale. Anyway, any guy who took me there on a date got extra credit.

[brinza]

My initial reaction to the OP was to be cynical, but after reading through the thread and carefully considering what wannabe chef seems to be trying to accomplish, I have a suggestion for a cocktail that is all at once sweet, tasty, sophisticated, trendy, modern, classic, and spans the gulf between a serious cocktail and a "pop" cocktail. Chris got me thinking along the lines of Dale DeGroff and then I had it. My wife and I hosted a cocktail party last December for which I made up a menu of several drinks for each spirit category, even including vodka (sigh). One of the biggest hits, especially with the women, was Dale's The Legends Cocktail. This was a cocktail he created for an event that was hosted by Oprah Winfrey in Santa Barbara (there's the trendy angle). It's found in his newest book The Essential Cocktail. It's not really difficult to make; it just takes a little advance planning, and it doesn't involve flavors that require an acquired taste, yet it's not bland or simple.

THE LEGENDS COCKTAIL

Sugar, for dusting the glass (I prepared several such glasses ahead of time and kept them in the freezer until called for)

Ground ginger, for dusting the glass

Orange slice, for use in preparing the glass.

1 small piece of fresh ginger root

1/2 oz Cointreau

1/2 St. Germain Elderflower liqueur

1 1/2 oz vodka

1/2 oz white cranberry juice (this is not hard to find--if I was able to get it, anyone should be able to)

3/4 oz fresh lime juice

Lemon peel spiral for garnish (remember, garnishes always impress because they make the drink look inviting and appetizing and they often add a pleasant aroma when you hold the glass under your nose)

Frost the rim of the cocktail glass using a mixture of 4 parts sugar to 1 part ground ginger, by holding the glass upside down and rubbing the orange slice along the outside of the glass. Then carefully dab the outside of the rim of the glass into the sugar/ginger mixture from a plate or saucer. Placed in freezer or refrigerator for a few hours.

Place the piece of ginger, Cointreau, and elderflower liqueur in the bottom of a bar glass and muddle. Add the vodka, cranberry and lime juices and ice, and shake well. Strain into the prepared glass and garnish with the lemon peel.

This drink will certainly impress, and you can both enjoy it (as thirtyoneknots suggested). Sugared (flavored) rim? White cranberry juice? Vodka? Oprah? How can it miss?

Edited September 16, 2010 by brinza (log)

[Tri2Cook]

Tri2cook you are exactly right, I think you understand very well what I want to do.

I was pretty sure I understood what you were going for here but I've been wrong plenty of times before. There are some excellent suggestions here from people who are much more knowledgeable in the area of cocktails than I am, I just happen to work around a lot of early 20's women who are always talking about their wild nights/weekends/parties/whatever and the things they like to drink are often brought up in those discussions. As far as more suggestions, I made up a pitcher of gin-gin mules at a staff thing this summer and they liked that one. And it's not a sugary "girlie" drink, I love 'em.

[ChickenStu]

THE LEGENDS COCKTAIL

Sugar, for dusting the glass (I prepared several such glasses ahead of time and kept them in the freezer until called for)

Ground ginger, for dusting the glass

Orange slice, for use in preparing the glass.

1 small piece of fresh ginger root

1/2 oz Cointreau

1/2 St. Germain Elderflower liqueur

1 1/2 oz vodka

1/2 oz white cranberry juice (this is not hard to find--if I was able to get it, anyone should be able to)

3/4 oz fresh lime juice

Lemon peel spiral for garnish (remember, garnishes always impress because they make the drink look inviting and appetizing and they often add a pleasant aroma when you hold the glass under your nose)

Sounds like a gussied up cosmo....

[FireAarro]

+1 on the Juliet and Romeo, that's an ultimate wow drink in terms of flavour and presentation, it's very accessible and very feminine.

[Dan Perrigan]

I don't think anyone has mentioned Audrey's Old Cuban yet. That one's a winner all around -- aged rum mojito topped with champagne.

Dan

[EvergreenDan]

In college I was partial to drinks that were a bit sweet and without too strong an alcohol flavor. I liked Tom Collins, although I made them with bottled "Collins Mix". I haven't made one in years, but I bet with just gin, lemon, sugar, and soda water, it would be a fine cocktail, one easily made sweet or sour, strong or weak as desired.

Also I like Whiskey sours -- sort of the same drink but with whiskey and no soda. You could use a mild Canadian whiskey or maybe an accessible bourbon.

While I've never made one, I know a lot of college girls liked Sloe Gin Fizzes (at the time), and I bet one made with Plymouth Sloe Gin would be excellent. Again, the same drink, but with Sloe Gin. The Plymouth Sloe Gin is a bit bitter, but I'd think there would be enough sugar there to make it popular. Very pretty color, too. You could also mix the Sloe Gin with Gin to adjust the strength of the sloe berry flavor.

And last, I would think that any well-made Tiki drink would be popular -- Mai Tai, Zombie, whatever. They do tend to have a lot of ingredients, some of which may be hard to find. Find a good recipe and use fresh ingredients.

I would happily drink any of these, so I think they would have broad appeal beyond the "young lady" set.

[Emily_R]

While I haven't had this, I've heard young women around my local college campus out at bars rave about what's called a "Cake Batter Martini". There are a lot of variations on the web... Here's a few of them...

http://everything2.com/title/Yellow+Cake+Martini

http://grinandbakeit.com/hello-world

Emily

[Chris Amirault]

While I've never made one, I know a lot of college girls liked Sloe Gin Fizzes (at the time), and I bet one made with Plymouth Sloe Gin would be excellent. Again, the same drink, but with Sloe Gin. The Plymouth Sloe Gin is a bit bitter, but I'd think there would be enough sugar there to make it popular. Very pretty color, too.

At Cook & Brown Public House, where I work, we have a Loretta Lynn Fizz that flies off the rail:

2 oz sloe gin

1 oz lemon

1/4 oz simple syrup (or to taste)

soda

4 drops rose water

Shake sloe gin, lemon, and simple; strain over rocks while adding soda. Drop rose water on top.