Simple Lockdown Cocktails to make at home
Going STIR crazy? It’s time for a quarantini…
The ‘quarantini’, as defined on the internet, is a drink easily made with just a few ingredients that can be sipped on while stuck at home.
Here are a few classic cocktail recipes (aka ‘quarantinis’) that you can make with ingredients that you can find in your fridge or pantry and your favourite drinks from your bar trolley. Most cocktail recipes actually consist of alcohol + sweetener + mixer, and if you really want to get fancy, you can throw in some fruit to add flavour to the drink.
Homegrown SAgroni
Our nation is standing together during this uncertain time and we’re all feeling patriotic so pour a homegrown SAgroni, using a premium South African gin, Bloedlemoen, and stay at home!
- 25 ml Bloedlemoen Gin
- 25 ml Campari
- 25 ml Sweet Vermouth
- 1 Orange peel twist garnish (Pro tip: use a potato peeler)
Stir all ingredients together and strain into a tumbler glass with a big block of ice. Take the twist and squeeze the oil over the cocktail.
Pro tip 2: Run the peel on the outside of the glass – it gives you a multi-sensory experience with the orange oil on your lips when you take a sip.
About Bloedlemoen Gin:
Bloedlemoen (pronounced ‘Blue’d Le Moon’) is a handcrafted South African, small batch local gin made from ten natural botanicals, including the delicious Tarocco Blood Orange, making it the world’s first Blood Orange gin. The fruit is sourced locally from the Western Cape.
Ginger Brave
Ginger has been used to ease stomachs for centuries so if you’re feeling a little anxious and unsettled, try the below remedy using your favourite whisky. We’d recommend Bannermans not only because it’s great value for money but because we like what it stands for – bravery and boldness. In medieval times, the king’s bannerman would lead the army into battle. The spicy snap of the ginger and whisky make a super simple cocktail taste deliciously complex and comforting.
Ingredients
- 50ml Bannermans Whisky
- 250ml Ginger Ale
- Lots of ice
Method
Fill a tall cocktail glass with ice. Stir in whisky and ginger ale.
About Bannermans Whisky:
Bannerman’s Finest Scotch Whisky is a Speyside-style Scotch whisky, produced and blended in Scotland, just outside Edinburgh. Bannerman’s is made using older, more complex malt whiskies, which give it a bolder, more complex flavour than other blends and help create its exceptionally long, smooth finish.
Don Papa Old Fashioned
Rum is the perfect spirit base for a cocktail that will transport your mind to sun, sea and sand. We’ve stuck to an oldie but a goodie for our rum-based cocktail because not only is it delicious but you only need a few ingredients to make it, most of which are probably already in your pantry.
Ingredients
- 2 parts Don Papa Dark rum
- 2 dashes Angostura Bitters
- 1 splash of water
- 1-2 tsp sugar
- Cubed ice
- To garnish: Orange peel
Method
Add the granulated sugar and Angostura Bitters to a rocks glass with a single ice cube. Stir the mix until the ice cube has melted enough to dissolve the sugar. Add another 3 to 4 ice cubes and half of the rum then stir for around 60 seconds. Top up the glass with more ice and add the rest of the rum, then stir for another 60 seconds
About Don Papa Rum
We all need a little magic and make believe at the moment. Crafted with great precision, Don Papa Rum is the spirit of the magical and mystical “Sugarlandia”. Sugarlandia, although not a real place, is inspired by the romance of the island of Negros (where Don Papa is made) and is the spiritual home of Don Papa Rum, a place that echoes the values of those that burnt with passion, honour, bravery, and resilience.
Graceful Mimosa
Did you know that a Mimosa contains 32% of your suggested daily dose of Vitamin C? Simply mix sparkling wine with orange juice.
- 60ml orange juice
- 120ml Grace du Roi White Gold Sparkling Wine
Fill a champagne flute one-third full of freshly squeezed orange juice and top up with ice-cold Grace du Roi White Gold.
About Grace Sparkling Wine:
Grace Du Roi Sparkling Wines are a range of premium sparkling wines from South Africa’s traditional wine growing region in the Cape. Grace wines are known for their lively bubble, and refreshing green-apple and pear character (with a hint of raspberry and cream for the Rose wines). Grace due Roi Sparkling Wine uses Chenin Blanc as its base, and the unique flavour comes largely from the cuvee (first press) of the grape – the result is a clean, delicate wine, with a gentle fruitiness. Grace wines have a delicate balance of acidity and sweetness.
Garden & Tonic
There’s even something for the non-drinkers during lockdown. Seedlip is the world’s first distilled non-alcoholic spirit, solving the dilemma of ‘what to drink when you’re Not drinking ®’ It also boasts zero calories and is sugar-free, sweetener-free and artificial flavour-free making it perfect for the health enthusiasts too!
Add 50 ml Seedlip Garden to a highball glass
Top with quality tonic
Add a handful of peas and enjoy!
About Seedlip
Seedlip Garden 108 captures the essence of the English countryside with sophisticated top notes of the handpicked peas and hay from the founder’s family farm with a complex herbal base character of spearmint, rosemary and thyme.
Prize details:
One person will win a cocktail hamper worth R2000 with the following…
1 x Bloedlemoen Amber Gin
1 x Bloedlemoen Gin Original
1 x Bannermans Whiskey
1 x Don Papa Rum
3 x Grace Sparkling Wine
1 x Seedlip
How to enter:
Add your name to the comments section and tell us who you would take with you? Winners will be announced at next week’s show, so stay tuned for details.