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Cocktails

Our Favorite Easy Shaken Cocktails

October 27, 2023

Story: Punch Staff

photo: Lizzie Munro

Cocktails

Our Favorite Easy Shaken Cocktails

October 27, 2023

Story: Punch Staff

photo: Lizzie Munro

From a low-proof Margarita to a Trader Vic-inspired sour and more.

There’s something about shaken cocktails—perhaps the vigorous nature of their creation, or the propensity for the whole thing to go flying in the process—that suggests they’re harder to make than their stirred or built counterparts. For this reason, when it comes time to mix up a drink at the end of a long day, we often find ourselves turning to the simplicity of a Negroni or a Calvados & Tonic. But whipping out the shaker offers the opportunity not only to add new dimension to a favorite amaro, it opens up the possibility of exploring entire genres of cocktails—from sours to cobblers—that are as easy to make as they are to drink. Some, like the Campari Shakerato, require no housemade ingredients at all, not even simple syrup. Here, 15 easy cocktail recipes that prove turning to the shaker is never a bad idea.

Recipes

Trader Vic’s Sour

A tiki sour that works equally well with bourbon, Scotch or brandy.

Nuclear Daiquiri Recipe
Recipes

Nuclear Daiquiri

A cult cocktail adds green Chartreuse to the classic rum recipe.

Enzoni Cocktail Recipe
Recipes

Enzoni

A bittersweet sour combines muddled green grapes with gin, Campari and lemon.

Recipes

Milano-Torino Sour

The two-ingredient, equal-parts aperitivo classic gets the sour treatment.

Ranglum Modern Classic Cocktail
Recipes

Ranglum

A "minor classic" popular throughout Germany.

Underrated Classic Cocktail Rattlesnake
Recipes

Rattlesnake

A frothy, absinthe-spiked cocktail that's surprisingly balanced.

Darryl Strawberry Easy Amaro Cocktail Recipe
Recipes

Darryl Strawberry (at the Yankees)

A fruit-forward smash starring Amaro Montenegro and rum.

Allspice Dram Cocktail
Recipes

Winter Waltz

A whiskey-based spice bomb that can be easily batched for a crowd.

Gold Rush Cocktail Recipe
Recipes

Gold Rush

Honey syrup shines in this Whiskey Sour update.

Recipes

Army & Navy

A tropical gin sour from the 1930s.

Recipes

50/50 Margarita

A split base of mezcal and manzanilla sherry offers a lower-ABV take on the classic.

Recipes

Betty Carter

A sherry and amaro-infused whiskey sour in ode to legendary jazz singer Betty Carter.

Macunaima
Recipes

Macunaíma

A citrusy shaken drink that's become a national favorite in Brazil.

Recipes

Mountain Man

Giffard's Pêche de Vigne accentuates the roundness of maple syrup and the spice of ginger.

Whiskey peach smash cocktail recipe
Recipes

Whiskey Peach Smash

Dale DeGroff adds fresh peaches for a summery smash.

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