Defining a CLASSIC

What makes some cocktails enduringly popular and others destined for obscurity? We speak to four industry-leading experts to find out...

- ALICIA MILLER

Ryan Chetiyawardana's perfect Martini

60ml Beefeater gin

15ml Martini Extra Dry

1 drop orange bitters

Stir over ice, then carefully strain into a very cold, small cocktail glass with a Nocellara olive. Spritz a lemon twist over the top, but discard.

Ever tasted a Flower Thrower? What about a Nuts for Nuts? If they don't sound familiar, just one bar (London's excellent Coupette, as it happens). However, if asked whether you've ever sipped a Martini or Mojito, an Old Fashioned or a Manhattan, bets are you'll know.

While some cocktails lodge in our collective consciousness, others remain one-bar wonders. But why? We asked some of the world's top bartenders. Ryan Chetiyawardana, aka Mr Lyan (pictured above), of London's award-winning Lyaness, Chelsie Bailey (see p78) of The Savoy's American Bar, Simone Caporale (see p80) of Barcelona's innovative Sips, and Linden Pride (see p79) of Italian favourite Dante NYC weigh in.

INSIDE THE GLASS

Let's start with the practicalities. Our experts agree that in order to become a classic in the first place, a cocktail has to be easy to replicate; otherwise it'll never make it beyond the bar in which it was invented. Replicability depends on how simple the recipe is to make, and how easy the ingredients are to find.