Making Your Very Own Cocktail

Cocktails have moved beyond pina coladas with an umbrella and cherry garnish. Most discerning drinkers now know their mojitos from their margaritas - but they may not know how to make them at home. The best way to learn how to make a cocktail is to make lemonade. The idea is that the cornerstone of cocktail making is in the understanding of the relationships between strong and weak, sour and sweet. 'Strong' refers to the main alcohol component of the drink, such as vodka, rum or gin; 'weak' means the lesser alcoholic beverages, such as liqueurs and fortified wines; 'sour' mainly means citrus fruits, such as lemon or lime; and 'sweet' accounts for sugar and syrups.

Almost all of the cocktails you're likely to make will consist of both strong and sour. Weak and sweet can then be added to your preferred taste, sometimes together, sometimes on their own. As with the lemonade, if you start out with the sour and then add either sweet, weak or both, you can get a good idea of what your final cocktail will taste like before adding the strong.The most important thing is to experiment and have fun.