I can cross off “attend bartending school” from my “things to do in your lifetime” list, thanks to the fun team-building activity D organized for the five of us tonight at Indy!

We headed over to this little dive bartending school tucked away in a shopping center after work to learn how to make cocktails from an instructor who turned out to be … well … the most unenthusiastic person we’ve ever met (and a prick!). We had to look at each other to make sure that we’re in the right place because we all expected a bartender / instructor to be friendly, social and a burst of energy – characteristics you would think come with the profession – and not, you know, a plain vanilla!

The class, however, was pretty interesting and we learned some new things about the art of mixology. Did you know that the only difference between a Martini and a Gibson is the garnish (Gibson is served with three cocktail onions on a pick, and martini, of course, is served with an olive) and four seconds of pouring equals to an ounce?

Each of us had the chance to go behind the bar and make our favorite cocktail. I made Cosmopolitan because it was the prettiest drink (the light pink from the cranberry juice is absolutely adorable). The funny part about standing on the other side of the bar was discovering that everything in bottles were just a colored-water. I guess it’s too expensive to use real alcohol for practice. What you see in the picture, therefore, is not a real Cosmo (the lime slice made out of a cheap sponge should be a giveaway) — but it looks cute, doens’t it?

Cosmopolitan
2 oz. Vodka
½ oz. Cointreau (orange-flavored liqueur)
Splash of Rose’s Lime Juice
Splash of cranberry juice

For aspiring bartenders to pass the final exam, they would have to memorize 100+ recipes so they come up with creative ways of memorizing them. One way to remember the Cosmopolitan ingredients is by using the first letter of each ingredients (V for Vodka, C for Cointreau, L for lime juice and C for cranberry juice) and call it, “V-ery C-lassy L-adies C-ocktail. I know it’s silly but it seems to work!

Although I don’t drink much, this mixology thing got me interested in learning more about cocktails! Maybe a bartending school is in my future … ? Or not.