Sherry Cobbler Cocktail Recipe

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Although its exact origins are unclear, the sherry Cobbler is an American cocktail that was probably cropped up sometime 1820s or 1830s as a sherry variation of the Cobbler cocktail class. The drink was created as a refreshing summer cocktail, meant to be served with lots of crushed ice to beat the heat. Sherry, which is a fortified wine from Spain, is often more boozy than regular wine but less so than hard liquor, so it gave people an opportunity to imbibe a sweet and balanced drink without all the punch of harder options. The straw is also important. In fact, serving the sherry Cobbler with a straw was a novel idea at the time, so this cocktail helped popularize the sipping vessel in the minds of Americans, and it hasn't left since.

This sherry Cobbler cocktail recipe hits on all those staple inclusions (including the straw), making for a nicely-balanced and refreshing drink. Besides sherry, this drink features fresh orange (muddled to release the oils and citrus flavor) and simple syrup to sweeten the dry sherry, preferably amontillado for its medium body and flavor notes. Although the sherry Cobbler pretty much disappeared with Prohibition, it's still a fun (and easy) one to whip up at home. In just a couple of minutes, you can enjoy a refreshing taste of American history.

The ingredients for this cocktail are simple. You will only need a couple of orange wheels, amontillado sherry, and simple syrup.

Muddle one of the orange wheels at the bottom of a cocktail shaker.

Pour the sherry and simple syrup into the shaker.

Fill the shaker with ice and shake for 10-12 seconds.

Fill a Collins glass with ice.

Pour the liquid from the shaker into the glass without straining it.

Garnish the drink with the second orange wheel. Serve immediately with a straw.

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You can easily modify the sherry cobbler to tweak the flavor and appearance. The drink is normally made with orange wheels, one to muddle and one to use as a garnish. Feel free to sub lemon or lime instead. Instead of a wheel, you could use a twist if you prefer a different aesthetic. Some people enjoy topping the sherry Cobbler with mint and berries. Seasonal berries are a wonderful ingredient to use here. Raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries would all work. A tropical fruit like pineapple would contribute more sweetness, and peach, apple, or pear are additional tasty choices.

Amontillado sherry is recommended, but you can use other kinds of sherry, like manzanilla or oloroso, if needed. Instead of standard simple syrup made with white granulated sugar, try using less refined types of cane sugar, like demerara sugar, to make the syrup. These retain some of the molasses and contribute a touch of a deeper, caramel-like flavor.

You can also serve a sherry Cobbler in a highball glass, which is similar to a Collins glass and another of the many types of cocktail glasses out there. You'll sometimes see it served in an old fashioned glass, so use what works for you. While this drink is traditionally served with crushed ice, use ice cubes (small ones if possible) if you need to. The important thing is that it's ice cold.

Shaking is preferred for cocktails containing fruit juice, citrus, egg whites, dairy, and thick syrups. The agitation of the ingredients with ice aerates and emulsifies the ingredients, which makes the liquid frothier with a more even mouthfeel. It also makes the drink very cold very quickly. Finally, shaking dilutes the drink a little because some of the ice melts from the movement (to prevent over dilution, fill the shaker to the top with ice to limit how much the cubes move). This process continues after pouring the drink, unless it's fine strained, because little pieces of ice will pass through the strainer and end up in the drink.

Cocktails like martinis featuring only spirits benefit from stirring. First, if shaken with ice, the drink will lose its transparency and take on a frothier appearance. But the other reason to stir is because shaking with ice dilutes the drink more than stirring does, covering the pure taste of the spirits. A cocktail such as the sherry Cobbler, on the other hand, benefits from shaking so as to get that liquid ice cold and ensure that the muddled orange flavor fuses with the liquids. This recipe requires muddling an orange wheel with a muddling tool at the bottom of the shaker. But if you want, you can muddle while shaking instead. You'll need to shake quite vigorously to break up the orange slice.

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