Skip to main content

Celebrate National Scotch Day with these Whisky Cocktails

Happy National Scotch Day! As you probably know, this brown spirit is a malt or grain whisky made in Scotland and aged in oak barrels for at least three years. Whether you’re a single malt or blend type of guy, this is the day to drink this smokey libation. As with any day celebrating the consumption of spirits, we here at The Manual like to honor the occasion by sipping on a strong cocktail. So we asked some of our favorite scotch brands to send their best recipes so you can play mixologist at home.

Curious Scotsman
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Curious Scotsman
By Brandon Lockman of Red Star Tavern
Ingredients:
2 oz Monkey Shoulder scotch
1 oz Punt e Mes sweet vermouth
1 bar spoon Giffard crème du Banane liqueur
2 dash chocolate bitters

Recommended Videos

Method:
Stir in a mixing glass until chilled. Strain into a Nick and Nora glass. Garnish with two brandied cherries.

godfather sour, national scotch day, scotch, whiskyMonkey Shoulder Godfather Sour
Ingredients:
1 1/2 oz Monkey Shoulder Whisky
3/4 oz Amaretto liqueur
1 oz fresh lemon juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
1/2 oz egg white (optional)

Method:
Add ingredients to shaker, shake well and strain into glass.

 

national scotch day, scotch, scotch whisky, <a href=drinks, cutty sark pear cooler" width="620" height="396">Cutty Sark Pear Cooler
Ingredients:
1 1/2 oz Cutty Sark Prohibition Edition
1/4 oz lemon juice
1/4 oz honey
2 oz ginger beer
1/8th of a ripe pear

Method:
In a shaker, muddle the pear with honey and lemon. Add the whisky and shake. Double strain over fresh ice into a Collins glass. Top with ginger beer and garnish with a pear slice.

old-fashioned, drink, whisky, national scotch day, scotch whiskyDEWAR’S Old Fashioned
Ingredients:
1 part Dewar’s® White Label® Blended Scotch Whisky
1 teaspoon sugar
2 dashes bitters
2 orange slices
2 maraschino cherries
Water or soda

Method:
Place the sugar, bitters, 1 orange slice and 1 cherry in the bottom of a rocks glass. Add DEWAR’S, ice and stir. Garnish with the remaining orange slice and cherry.

The Thai Scotsman
From Hakkasan in New York City
Ingredients:
2 oz Chivas 12 Year
.5 oz lemongrass syrup
4 dashes of plum bitters
Orange zest

Method:
Build the cocktail in a Boston or coupe glass with ice. Stir. Garnish with a lemongrass stick if desired.

This post was originally published 7/27/2014 and updated 7/26/2016 by Chase McPeak.

Amanda Gabriele
Amanda Gabriele is a food and travel writer at The Manual and the former senior editor at Supercall. She can’t live without…
A clarified whole milk cocktail with fruits and coffee for National Mezcal Day
Using milk to clarify your cocktails gives them an elegant clear appearance and great mouthfeel
mezcalita cocktail recipe img 0353 1

Mezcal is one of the hottest spirits in cocktails right now, and it's great for making simple but delicious drinks like a mezcal margarita, Old Fashioned, or Paloma. But as today is National Mezcal Day, we're exploring some of the more ambitious uses for this complex and beloved spirit.

We've got a recipe from the Hilton Cancun Mar Caribe, a hotel in Cancun which has its own cocktail mixologists working on ways to make use of mezcal. They have come up with a highly unusual mezcal recipe which makes use of milk for clarification. This technique is mostly seen in clarified milk punch, but can be used with other ingredients too to both give your drinks a beautiful clear appearance and to add a rich and silky mouthfeel.

Read more
Try a Sei Less, Drink More cocktail in honor of National Vodka Day
Combine Grey Goose vodka with herbal liqueur and passion fruit puree to make this elegant drink
sei less drink more cocktail 1

This week is host to National Vodka Day, and to celebrate the event trendy New York restaurant Sei Less has its own signature cocktail making use of vodka. Known for its star-studded clientele including musicians like Cardi B and Travis Scott, the restaurant features Asian fusion food and its cocktail menu opts for modern twists on classic drinks.

Vodka can arguably be either the easiest spirit to mix into a cocktail -- because high-quality vodkas have such a subtle taste that they can be mixed with practically anything -- or the hardest -- because it's difficult to make a vodka cocktail which really stands out. The drink for Sei Less, called the Sei Less, Drink More, uses the botanical liqueur Rockey's and the sharp sweet zing of passion fruit puree to add interest and complex flavors to the drink.

Read more
Sip on these cocktails to celebrate National Rum Day
From the Daiquiri to the Painkiller, rum is the backbone of a huge variety of cocktails
national rum day 2024 high res  hibiscus spritz 02 comp

Today is National Rum Day, so let's take a beat to consider this often-overlooked spirit. It's easy to drink, easy to mix, and for that reason it sometimes doesn't get celebrated as much as more challenging spirits like Scotch. But rum is a vast category, encompassing everything from complex, aged fine rums for sipping to sweet spiced rums for casual mixed drinks, so it's worth taking some time to explore all the variety that it offers.

Rum is the backbone of many of the world's favorite cocktails, like the crowd-pleasing Mojito, the easy to make Dark n Stormy, and the perennially popular Cuba Libre. If you truly want to appreciate the nuances of a good rum (short of sipping it neat), then one of the best cocktails to show off all of its complexities is a Daiquiri. With nothing but rum, lime juice, and some sweetener, this is the perfect choice for getting to know new rums.

Read more