After dinner cordials or liqueurs were first used as practical medicinal or digestive aids. The word "cordial" comes from the Latin "cor" meaning "heart" as it was believed to be a heart stimulant. Their origins go back to the 1500s. Monasteries were instrumental in their development.
-------------------
18th Century
There are different versions of how the term "cocktail" came into being. One is that the first cocktail was served during the American Revolution. In 1776, Betsy Flanagan, a tavern owner, served a concoction of rum, rye and fruit juices to Washington's officers. She would garnish each drink with a rooster feather. A Frenchman in the group came up with the toast, "Vive le coq's tail" which later became "cocktail." Another story is that the term gets its name from an enchanting Mexican girl named "Coctel" and yet another claims that mixed drinks were served to horse-racing fans in the early 1800s who made the connection in the belief that horses of mixed blood had cocked tails. Whatever story is true, they all become believable after a few cocktails.
-------------
The Golden Age
The golden age of cocktails was, of course, the Jazz Age and many cocktails were developed at this time. These were short, stylish, neat drinks, often based on gin or whiskey. Later, the fascination in the '50s with Latin music, culture, and life led to the invention of long, cool, fruity, rum-based drinks. In the '60s, the martini came back and James Bond's immortal "shaken, not stirred" resounded in many a lounge. In the '70s and '80s, long, cool, fruit-based drinks were in again but this time around were more elaborate with even more fanciful names: sex on the beach, tequila sunrise. Today, true to history, the more sophisticated cocktails are making a comeback.
History of Cocktails
Early History
After dinner cordials or liqueurs were first used as practical medicinal or digestive aids. The word "cordial" comes from the Latin "cor" meaning "heart" as it was believed to be a heart stimulant. Their origins go back to the 1500s. Monasteries were instrumental in their development.
-------------------
18th Century
There are different versions of how the term "cocktail" came into being. One is that the first cocktail was served during the American Revolution. In 1776, Betsy Flanagan, a tavern owner, served a concoction of rum, rye and fruit juices to Washington's officers. She would garnish each drink with a rooster feather. A Frenchman in the group came up with the toast, "Vive le coq's tail" which later became "cocktail." Another story is that the term gets its name from an enchanting Mexican girl named "Coctel" and yet another claims that mixed drinks were served to horse-racing fans in the early 1800s who made the connection in the belief that horses of mixed blood had cocked tails. Whatever story is true, they all become believable after a few cocktails.
-------------
The Golden Age
The golden age of cocktails was, of course, the Jazz Age and many cocktails were developed at this time. These were short, stylish, neat drinks, often based on gin or whiskey. Later, the fascination in the '50s with Latin music, culture, and life led to the invention of long, cool, fruity, rum-based drinks. In the '60s, the martini came back and James Bond's immortal "shaken, not stirred" resounded in many a lounge. In the '70s and '80s, long, cool, fruit-based drinks were in again but this time around were more elaborate with even more fanciful names: sex on the beach, tequila sunrise. Today, true to history, the more sophisticated cocktails are making a comeback.
