Vodka Cocktail
A berry and sour vodka cocktail ∙ Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 21.8% ABV ∙
The Vodka Cocktail is a shaken vodka sour of cherry liqueur and fresh lemon, with optional aromatic bitters, served up in a coupe.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: Vodka 60 mlCherry liqueur 25 mlLemon juice 15 mlAbbott's bitters 2 dashes (opt.)
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Garnish with a maraschino cherry on a skewer
Tips
- Taste before you strain; if it leans too tart or too sweet, nudge the cherry liqueur or lemon by a few drops.
History
The Vodka Cocktail is a modern vodka sour with no documented creator or origin date. Its base spirit reflects vodka's mid-20th-century rise from a spirit traditionally drunk neat in Eastern Europe to a mainstay cocktail base in the West.
FAQ
What is a Vodka Cocktail made of?
Vodka (60 ml), cherry liqueur (25 ml), and fresh lemon juice (15 ml), with two optional dashes of Abbott's bitters. The cherry liqueur does the sweetening, so there is no sugar syrup.
Is a Vodka Cocktail shaken or stirred?
Shaken. It has fresh lemon juice, so it gets a hard shake with ice to chill, dilute, and aerate it before it is strained into a coupe. Stirring is for drinks made only of spirits and wines.
What glass is a Vodka Cocktail served in?
A coupe glass, served up without ice, and finished with a maraschino cherry. Chilling the coupe beforehand keeps the drink cold longer, since there is no ice in the glass to maintain the temperature.
