Shaken and Stirred: The Origin Stories Behind Your Favourite Cocktails

Whether they’re sipped slowly in a smoky jazz bar or served poolside with a slice of citrus, cocktails have a way of capturing both the mood and the imagination. These spirited concoctions are more than just alcohol and mixers – they’re cultural icons, each with a tale as colourful as its garnish.

From the elegance of a Martini to the rebel charm of a Mojito, the world’s most beloved cocktails didn’t just appear – they evolved, inspired by history, myth, and a fair bit of mixology magic. So pull up a stool, raise a glass, and drink in the backstories behind some of the most celebrated cocktails on the menu.

Few drinks have stirred up as much debate as the Martini. First there’s the controversy of a certain British spy preferring his shaken rather than stirred, a notion which has ruffled the feathers of many a mixologist. And then there’s the fact that nobody can quite agree on its origin story. Some say it was first mixed by New York bartender Martini di Taggia at the Knickerbocker Hotel. Others that the drink’s name became a shorthand for requesting a gin and vermouth cocktail with the famed Italian vermouth brand, Martini & Rossi.

But the most widely shaken-out tale? That the Martini evolved from the Martinez – a sweeter, gin-forward concoction poured at San Francisco’s Occidental Hotel in the 1860s. Credited to bartender Jerry Thomas, it’s believed he often prepared it for customers visiting the nearby town of Martinez. Over the decades, it shed its sweetness, refined its edge, and came to embody something sleeker, sparer, and infinitely more debonair.

Long before it became a summertime staple, the Mojito was doing something far more vital than quenching thirst – it was thought to be saving lives. Yes, this refreshing blend of white rum, lime, sugar, mint, and soda water was originally used for medicinal purposes.

While the exact origins of the original remedy remain lost to time, it first entered the historical spotlight in the 16th century when Sir Francis Drake and his crew arrived in Havana suffering from scurvy and dysentery. Locals offered a medicinal concoction of sugarcane juice, lime, mint, and a rough, early form of rum known as aguardiente. The remedy worked. The grateful sailors dubbed the drink “El Draque,” in honour of the English privateer.

Over time, as distillation techniques improved and aguardiente evolved into refined rum, this pirate’s potion shed its purely medicinal identity. By the 19th century, it had matured into the Mojito we know today. And by the 20th, it had found favour with literary legends such as Ernest Hemingway, who famously enjoyed them at Havana’s La Bodeguita del Medio.

The Margarita is as zesty in history as it is in flavour. Tequila, triple sec, and lime juice – shaken and served with a salted rim – form the holy trinity of Mexico’s iconic cocktail. But who exactly first mixed this sunny concoction?

Several origin stories vie for dominance. One popular theory suggests the Margarita was invented in 1938 by bartender Carlos “Danny” Herrera at his Tijuana-area restaurant. Allegedly, he created it for a customer who was allergic to all spirits but tequila, and softened its kick with citrus and liqueur.

Another tale credits socialite Margarita Sames, who mixed the drink for guests at her Acapulco villa in 1948. Whatever the true story, by the 1950s the Margarita had spread beyond beachside bars to become a global sensation.

Rimmed in salt and steeped in speculation, the Margarita’s charm lies in its balance of sweetness, sourness, and a touch of mystery.

As bold and bitter as it is beloved, the Negroni is the drink for those who like their cocktails with backbone. Equal parts gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari, it’s thought to have been invented in Florence, Italy, around 1919.

The story goes that Count Camillo Negroni asked his bartender, Fosco Scarselli, to strengthen his usual Americano, a combination of Campari, sweet vermouth, and soda water, by replacing the soda with gin. The result? A ruby-red aperitif with a refined punch.

The Old Fashioned is arguably the grandfather of all cocktails, dating back to the early 1800s when it was simply called a “whiskey cocktail.” Just whiskey, sugar, bitters, and water – that’s all it takes to create this potent blend of simplicity and style.

Its name “Old Fashioned” came about in the late 19th century, as newer cocktails emerged and patrons started requesting the classic “old-fashioned” way of making drinks.

The Cosmopolitan – vodka, triple sec, cranberry juice, and lime – sparkled its way into popular culture in the 1990s, thanks in no small part to TV show Sex and the City. But its origins predate Carrie Bradshaw’s iconic glass-clinking moments. Versions of the drink existed as far back as the 1930s, though it wasn’t until the 1970s that bartenders began seriously experimenting. One claim credits Neal Murray in Minneapolis, who added cranberry juice to a Kamikaze and reportedly named it on the spot when a patron called it “cosmopolitan.”

Fast-forward to the neon-drenched nightlife of 1980s Miami, where South Beach bartender Cheryl Cook created a more stylish, Martini-glass-worthy version. She mixed Absolut Citron, triple sec, Rose’s lime, and cranberry juice – a combination as easy on the eyes as it was on the palate. Around the same time, the drink was making its way to New York City via San Francisco bartender Patrick “Paddy” Mitten.

And it was in New York almost a decade later that the recipe underwent its final evolution. In 1989 at The Odeon in Manhattan, Toby Cecchini and Melissa Huffsmith-Roth refined what is now considered the “standard” Cosmo recipe: Absolut Citron, Cointreau, fresh lime, and cranberry juice. The result? A cocktail with enough sparkle, sass, and sophistication to stir up a global following.

Think pink? Think Cosmopolitan.

Hailing from the Big Easy, the Sazerac is America’s first branded cocktail, steeped in Southern tradition and a touch of absinthe. Its story begins in 19th-century New Orleans, where apothecary Antoine Peychaud mixed his namesake bitters with cognac and sugar. By the mid-century, rye whiskey replaced cognac, absinthe was added, and the Sazerac was officially born.

Often served in a chilled glass rinsed with absinthe and garnished with a lemon peel, the Sazerac is more than a cocktail, it’s a classic entry for true aficionados of American mixology.

These iconic cocktails, with their tangled backstories and legendary lineages, are more than just drinks, they’re time capsules in a glass. Whether sparked by necessity, chance, or a flair for experimentation, each has carved out a place in global culture.