11 Creative Cocktails Inspired by the 2018 Oscars

2018 Oscar Cocktails

Every year Cocktail Chameleon Author and Entertaining Expert Mark Addison www.MarkAddison.com creates signature OSCAR COCKTAILS inspired for each of the Academy Awards’ Best Picture nominated films. This highly anticipated list of cinematic libations comes out the week after the nominees are announced.

These creative cocktails are ideal for your Oscar party or to show support of your favorite movie in the race for an Oscar.

Film: “Darkest Hour” The Churchill Champagne Cocktail is a variation of a Manhattan–style cocktail created for Winston Churchill in the 1940’s at the Savoy hotel in London. This version features his beloved Scotch whisky and champagne, which he reportedly drank most every day from noon to night.

The Churchill

1 oz. Scotch whisky (Churchill preferred Johnnie Walker)

1/2 oz. lime juice

1/2 oz. sweet vermouth

1/2 oz. Cointreau

2 oz. champagne

Garnish: lemon peel

Glassware: 8 oz. Tiffany & Co. Vintage Coupe Glass

Shake the ingredients together with ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass or coupe and top with chilled champagne. Garnish with the lemon peel.

Film: “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”

The themes in “Three Billboards…” are dark and horrific, which is challenging to draw inspiration from for a festive Oscar cocktail… instead, drawing inspiration from the title and the film’s location, “3 Cocktails…” features Missouri based spirits incorporated into classic cocktails with a distinctively Ozark ingredients and themes.

Missouri Mule

1 1/2 oz. Missouri Sprits Bourbon Whiskey

3/4 oz. lemon juice

1/2 oz. Campari

1/2 oz. Triple Sec

Garnish: lemon wheel

Glassware: 16 oz Christofle Highball Glass (6” h)

Combine with ice, shake and pour into a highball glass. Garnish with lemon wheel.

Missouri Manhattan

2 oz. Missouri Sprits Corn Whiskey

1/2 oz. Sweet Vermouth

1/2 oz. Agave Nectar

2 dashes Angostura

Bitters

Garnish: maraschino cherry, one king ice cube

Glassware: 8 oz. Christofle Old Fashion (3” h)

In a mixing glass with ice, combine the ingredients and stir well.

Strain over a king cube in an old fashion glass. Garnish with a cherry.

Missouri Martini

2 ounces Missouri Sprits Vodka

1/4 ounce extra dry vermouth

1/4 ounce pickle juice

1 dash of hot sauce

Garnish: dill pickle spear

Glassware: 8 oz. Christofle Martini Glass (6 1/2” h)

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until well chilled.

Strain contents into chilled martini glass and garnish with pickle.

Film: “Call me by your name”

The iconic Italian Negroni is updated with apricot liqueur and French dry vermouth inspired the film’s

Italian location, the apricot orchards surrounding family’s Italian countryside villa and the French heritage of romantic lead character, Elio.

Apricot Negroni Spritzer

1 1/4 oz gin

1 1/4 oz French dry vermouth

3/4 oz Aperol

1/4 oz apricot liqueur

3 dashes of orange bitters

Garnish: orange peel & apricot wedge

Glassware: 16 oz. Chateau Baccarat Tumbler (3 1/2″ h)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass and slowly stir to chill.

Pour into a tumbler and garnish with a peach slice and a cherry.

Film: “Shape of Water” – Fizz cocktails were at their height of popularity in the 50’s and 60’s during which the “Shape of Water” is set. The Swamp Fizz combines green Crème De Menthe (also immensely popular in the era), citrus, sugar and club soda in classic Fizz proportions with egg whites for added fizz and accentuates the Creatures’ favorite food, eggs!

Swamp Fizz

2 Oz. Gin

1 Tsp. Green Crème De Menthe

1 oz. fresh lemon juice

1 egg white

1 Tsp. Superfine Sugar

Club Soda

Garnish: lime zest

Glassware: Vintage Highball Glass (5 1/2″ h)

Add gin, crème de menthe, lemon juice, sugar and egg white to your shaker with ice and shake until well chilled. Strain into Collins glass over ice and top with club soda. Garnish with lime zest.

Film: “Dunkirk” – Inspired by the struggle to evacuate the Allieds soldiers from the beaches of France under attack by German forces, the Dunkirk Toddy blends a classic English hot beverage with

French cognac and Benedictine, resulting in a Franco-British hot cocktail that any of the 300,000 soldiers rescued in the operation would appreciate.

Dunkirk Toddy

The traditional Hot Toddy recipe is made with whisky but, to give the classic Toddy a French twist

I substitute equal parts French cognac and Benedictine Dom with its lovely warming flavors and its pronounced herbal and spicy tones.

1 oz. Benedictine Dom

1 oz. French cognac

1 dash Angostura bitters

4 cloves

1 lemon peel

1 oz. fresh lemon juice

1/2 oz. honey

Top with hot water

Garnish: one Cinnamon stick

Glassware: 8 oz Bormioli Rocco Oslo Coffee Cup

Fix the cloves into the wedge of lemon and put into a glass mug. Add all the other ingredients and top with hot water. Stir gently and serve.

Film: “Phantom Thread” – Dark Love is a champagne cocktail (variation on Perfect Love from Cocktail Chameleon) that embodies the volatile love affair between 50’s fashion couturier and a young waitress.

Parfait Amour (or Perfect Love) is a French violet liqueur, which, when combined with blue curacao takes on a blackish tone. The blend of a the eau de vie (water of life), Parfait amour and champagne creates a sweet rich libation that is impossible to resist… submit to this Dark Love

Dark Love

1 oz. Parfait Amour (violet liqueur)

1/2 oz. eau de vie Poire (pear brandy)

1/2 oz. blue curacao

5 oz. Champagne, chilled

Garnish: orchid flower

Glassware: 8 oz. Chateau Baccarat Flute

Fill the shaker with ice, then add the Parfait Amour, brandy and liqueur, shaking until well chilled.

Film: “The Post” – What is black, white and red all over…? The most infamous newspaper, The Washington Post! Known for exposing the Watergate scandal and Pentagon Papers, the latest film The Post (and this cocktail) draw allusions to the then and current presidencies. Black, White, and Read All Over looks like an all American coffee, but a white Russian lurks under the surface and is stained by a red cherry syrup.

Black & White and Read All Over

2 oz. cold–press coffee

1 oz. vodka

1oz. coffee liqueur

1oz. orange liqueur

1 oz. half & half

Garnish: 1/2 oz. maraschino cherry juice

Glassware: 8 oz. Libbey Irish Coffee Mug

Fill the shaker with ice and add the coffee, vodka and liqueurs, shaking until well chilled.

Pour into the glass and float the half & half on top by slowly pouring it over the back of the spoon followed by the cherry juice.

Film: “Get Out” – Chris agrees to be hypnotized by his girlfriend’s mother to cure his smoking addiction but instead, sinks into the “sunken place” where after an operation to transplant the mind of a white man into his body, Chris would remain in the void watching powerlessly. The Sunken Place cocktail looks innocuous on the surface, but has a dark underside trapped beneath.

The Sunken Place

2 oz. rum

1 oz. coconut rum

2 oz. pineapple juice

1 oz. cream of coconut

Garnish:

½ oz. blue curacao

½ oz. grenadine

Glassware: 12 oz. Mikasa Cheers Martini Glass

Combine rums, pineapple juice and cream of coconut in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into chilled martini glass.

Combine the blue curacao and grenadine and slowly drizzle down the side of the glass. It will settle at the bottom and create a beautiful “black and white” layered look.

Film: “Lady Bird” The Kiwi Punch represents the struggle of

Lady Bird (aka Christine) who desperately wants to fly–off to an out –of–state college, but feels grounded by her over protective and critical mother. A Kiwi is a flightless bird native of New Zealand as well as a fruit also from New Zealand. Kiwi fruit gives the punch its fruity “punch” and is served in a soda glass making it look unassuming while packing another “punch” of vodka.

*Simply omit the vodka, for a non–alcoholic version.

Kiwi Punch

(aka Flightless Bird) –Serves 8

2 cups kiwi, peeled and diced

12 mint leaves

2 tablespoons sugar

3 limes, juiced

2 cups vodka

2 cups tonic water

ice cubes

1 kiwi, thinly sliced for garnish

Garnish: Star fruit slice, mint sprigs

Glassware: 16 oz. Riedel Coca Cola Glass

In a pitcher, combine diced kiwis, mint leaves, sugar, and ½ lime juiced. Muddle the contents until fully combined. Fill the pitcher with ice and top off with vodka and tonic water. Stir, pour into eight tumbler glasses over ice making sure each glass receives equal amounts of kiwi and mint leaves. Garnish with a star fruit slice and mint sprig.