National Cocktail Day: The World’s Best Selling Cocktails 2018
Which drink has been receiving your personal support?
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All the times that you were at the pub, sipping and supporting your team during a match, your drink of choice was also competing against others. Drinks International has undertaken a major polling of the world’s best bars, and the results are in, just in time for National Cocktail Day
The final ranking revealed the top 50 best-selling cocktails as of 2018. Drinks International conducted the survey by asking their best 106 bars to rank the 10 best-selling classics (giving each vote an incremental ranking to represent volume).
The World’s Best Selling Cocktails in 2018
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1. Old Fashioned
Its the fourth year of this old friend’s reign as king. And the American whiskey classic is only picking up pace, says the poll. Expert approach to making the drink? Bourbon or rye are your best bets. One sugar cube wetted with three dashes of Angostura bitters and a little soda, crushed, stirred with a large ice cube and two ounces of rye.
2. Negroni
…And its four years in a row that the bitter Negroni has held sweet second. Once a ‘bartender’ drink, now a drink for the people, 16% of bars said it was their number one classic. The funny thing is that the Negroni is one of the easiest make-at-home drinks: a third of Campari, sweet vermouth and gin.
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3. Whiskey Sour
The Whiskey Sour has made it’s way up the ranks past the Daiquiri and Manhattan this year. This everyman’s drink is made of bourbon, lemon juice and a teaspoon of sugar. Although the egg white is optional, to forgo it would be missing out on some ace texture.
4. Dry Martini
The Dry Martini, made with gin, not vodka, is moving up in the world. Just over half of bars polled reported that it was among their top ten cocktails. For an exemplar martini, go half-and-half gin to French vermouth, plus a dash of orange bitters, a squeeze of lemon rind and a green olive.
5. Daiquiri
The number one drink for rum fans. At the drink’s home, Havana’s La Floridita, they prefer the frozen version, which means lime juice, white rum and sugar syrup, shaken and served.
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6. Margarita
The top tequila classic in the poll’s sample of the world’s best bars. So long as there’s tequila and (fresh) limes, this drink will be around. Do yourself a favour with 100% agave tequila and agave syrup.
7. Manhattan
Usually towering over the list, this is the first year the Manhattan has been bumped from the top four. Around 9% of the bars polled say it’s a top-three classic, while 45% count it within their top 10. Jim Meehan of PDT has the goods: rye whiskey, sweet vermouth and two dashes of Angostura, stirred with ice, strained into a chilled coupe and garnished with brandied cherries.
8. Moscow Mule
This simple drink’s high ranking might be indicating a comeback for vodka. It’s a good beginners drink: vodka, lime, ginger and soda.
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9. Espresso Martini
Most popular in the UK, this after-dinner cocktail of espresso coffee, vodka and coffee liqueur has received revived attention this year. The bevy’s buzz perhaps owes to the sad passing of the drinks’ creator, Dick Bradsell.
10. Mojito
Almost a third of bars said this Cuban classic is a top ten favourite. For authenticity, the rum should be Cuban, and the greenery, spearmint. Ensuring that the sugar is fully dissolved is a surprisingly neglected step.
See the rest of the list at Drinks International.
