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Cocktails

Turn Your Favorite Classics Low-ABV

April 14, 2023

Story: Punch Staff

photos: Shannon Sturgis

Cocktails

Turn Your Favorite Classics Low-ABV

April 14, 2023

Story: Punch Staff

photos: Shannon Sturgis

The Manhattan, Jungle Bird and more, at a lower proof.

For most drinkers, classic cocktails serve as craving benchmarks. When it’s sweater weather and you’ve got whiskey on the brain? Make it a Manhattan. When you’re roasting in the midsummer sun and in desperate need of refreshment? Send Margaritas. The trouble is, the ABV of our benchmarks tends to clock in above the mark where they can reasonably be dubbed sessionable. The good news is these drinks can easily be altered to bring down the ABV while preserving the flavor profiles that made them classics in the first place.

For a sour or daisy formula, like the Daiquiri or Margarita, the easy way to lower ABV is to split the base, substituting a lower-proof ingredient for half of the base spirit. In the case of the Margarita, consider cutting the tequila in half (at least) and subbing in savory manzanilla sherry—an ingredient that fits right in with the sweet-sour-salty Margarita flavor matrix—to make up the balance.

Meanwhile, with an all-booze construction like the Manhattan, start by inverting the 2:1 ratio of whiskey and sweet vermouth so that the spirit becomes the supporting player. To maintain balance, dial back the new, richer base by splitting it with a drier ingredient, such as dry vermouth or amontillado sherry, which provide the kind of punchy, savory notes found in whiskey. The trick here is to consider sweetness and texture in the drink structure, and adjust the ingredient ratios to taste.

A final method for turning the classics more crushable is simply to add water. By topping with tonic water or coconut water (or both), even the most hard-hitting drinks can become lighter, brighter highballs.

You can use these techniques to modify just about any cocktail, but for ultimate ease, we’ve assembled nine bartender-backed recipes across every style, from a split-base Gin & Tonic to a lesser-known stirred classic.

Shaken
Recipes

50/50 Margarita

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

Recipes

Tropical Fluff

A low-proof mashup of the Jungle Bird and the Garibaldi.

Recipes

Artichoke Hold

A close relative of the Bitter Mai Tai.

Stirred
low proof negroni cocktail recipe
Recipes

Sharon

Manzanilla sherry stars in this low-octane Negroni.

session manhattan recipe
Recipes

Session Manhattan

Sweet vermouth and rye switch places.

Old Hickory Cocktail Dauphines
Recipes

Neal Bodenheimer’s Old Hickory

An obscure vermouth-based classic, retooled for more flavor and less dilution.

Built
martini highball cocktail recipe
Recipes

Dirty Martini Highball

A tall rendition of a dirty Martini that turns drinking dictums on their head.

low proof julep cocktail recipe
Recipes

Cynar Julep

A julep built on Cynar instead of bourbon.

Recipes

Soft Shock

Our low-proof house Gin & Tonic, made with a split base of gin and fino sherry.

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