Was your Campari pour in your negroni a little too heavy? Don’t toss it out and start over! Any cocktail can be fixed with this handy cheat sheet for how to create a balanced cocktail (and save unbalanced ones).
Have you ever attempted to make one of your favorite cocktails at home and it just...didn’t taste right? Maybe you gulped it down anyway, maybe you attempted to tinker with it and gave up, or maybe you swore off at-home mixology altogether because no one could POSSIBLY mix up a better margarita than your favorite local bartender.
Mixology may seem intimidating, but it’s all just flavor math. When complementary flavors come together in the right proportions, that’s when you get that first sip that makes you go “Ooo” instead of “Ugh.”
Here’s your ultimate guide to how to mix a balanced cocktail, including flavor breakdowns, mixing rules of thumb and a cheat sheet on how to fix your favorite unbalanced classic cocktails.
To understand how to make a good cocktail, you’ve got to understand how to balance your flavors. There are five basic flavors:
Sweet: honey, agave, sugar, fruits, syrups
Salty: salt, olives, bacon and pretty much any other Bloody Mary topping
Bitter: coffee, dark chocolate, tonic water, bitters, certain liqueurs and aperitifs (like Campari and Aperol)
Sour: citrus, vinegar, yogurt, kombucha and other fermented ingredients
Every drink has a primary flavor profile, but the best ones use complementary flavors to create a dynamic tasting experience. Think about the flavors in an Aperol Spritz that make it so deliciously refreshing: you’ve got bitter Aperol, bubbly and sweet prosecco and citrus from the orange that all come together for a drink you never want to stop sipping.
There are also flavors that bring out the best in other flavors, like a best friend who hypes you up before a night out. As a general rule of thumb, these flavors enhance each other 1:
SWEET enhances SALTY
SALTY enhances SWEET
SOUR enhances UMAMI and SALTY
As an example, what would a margarita be without a salt rim? The sodium just takes all the flavors already present in the cocktail to the next level. That’s what you want when adding complementary flavors.
You now know how to pair complementary flavors for a taste explosion, but even the most seasoned bartenders mix an off-balance drink from time to time. The key is knowing how to identify the ingredient in excess, correct it with a complementary ingredient and enjoy.
As general rules of thumb, these are the ingredients that balance each other 1:
SWEET can balance SOUR or BITTER
SOUR can balance SWEET or BITTER
BITTER can balance SWEET or SALTY
SALTY can balance BITTER
Therefore, you can fix a cocktail that’s off-kilter by adding more of a balancing ingredient.
Is your cocktail too sour? Add a little simple syrup.
Is your cocktail too sweet? Add more soda water.
Is your cocktail too bitter? Add a pinch of salt.
Is your cocktail too salty? Add a bit more Campari.
Here at ABC University, we believe in learning by doing, so let’s explore flavor balancing by fixing common mistakes in five classic cocktails.
Issue: Too bitter
How to fix it: Add more sweetness, like sweet vermouth or even a dash of simple syrup. You can also swap out Campari for a less bitter aperitif, like soft orange Aperol or earthy Cynar.
Issue: Too sour
How to fix it: Add more sweetness, like agave or simple syrup. If you like a flavored margarita, you can also add a sweet fruit juice, like mango, pineapple or guava.
Issue: Too sweet
How to fix it: Add more sourness (lime juice). You can also add more rum if you like a stiff drink.
Issue: Too salty
How to fix it: Add more bitterness (grapefruit juice).
Issue: Too spicy
How to fix it: Add more sweetness (tomato juice) or sourness (lemon or lime juice).
You did it. You are now the master of the five flavors, fixer of unbalanced cocktails, creator of delicious drinks, first of your name. Go forth and mix. Happy sipping.
