5 Bourbon Cocktails Every Beginner Should Know

You bought a good bottle of bourbon. Now what? These five cocktails cover every occasion — and they’re genuinely hard to mess up.

1. The Old Fashioned

The original. Muddled sugar, bitters, orange peel, and good bourbon over a big ice cube.

Recipe:

• 2 oz bourbon
• 1 tsp sugar or 1 sugar cube
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• Orange peel for garnish

Muddle the sugar with bitters and a splash of water. Add bourbon and a large ice cube. Express the orange peel over the glass and drop it in.

2. Bourbon Sour

Bright, balanced, and crowd-pleasing. Add an egg white if you want to impress someone.

Recipe:

• 2 oz bourbon
• ¾ oz fresh lemon juice
• ¾ oz simple syrup
• Optional: 1 egg white

Shake hard with ice (dry shake first if using egg white). Strain into a rocks glass.

3. Mint Julep

Yes, it’s the Derby drink. No, it’s not just for May.

Recipe:

• 2 oz bourbon
• 8–10 fresh mint leaves
• ½ oz simple syrup
• Crushed ice

Gently muddle mint with syrup. Add bourbon and pack with crushed ice. Garnish with a mint bouquet.

4. Manhattan

Stirred, not shaken. Sophisticated and surprisingly simple.

Recipe:

• 2 oz bourbon (or rye)
• 1 oz sweet vermouth
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• Cherry garnish

Stir with ice for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe.

5. Whiskey Ginger

The go-to when you want something refreshing and low-effort.

Recipe:

• 2 oz bourbon
• 4 oz ginger beer or ginger ale
• Lime wedge

Build over ice. Squeeze in the lime. Done.

Start with the Old Fashioned. Master it. The rest follow naturally.