What it looks like is important - How To Garnish a Cocktail

Appearances are important!

Garnishes are terrific for making good drinks look even better. That said, a good garnish won't save a bad drink! Like juices, you need to keep your garnishes fresh -- sliced citrus fruit lasts no more than 24 hours.
There are no hard and fast rules for garnishing drinks, but it is sensible to try to use relevant garnishes: tropical fruits for a tropical cocktail, for instance. Basically, keep them simple, logical, and fresh.

 

Popular garnishes

Lemons

When life gives you lemons... make lemon garnishes! Cut off the ends of the lemon and then slice the fruit into 6 or 8 wedges, preferably with a slit in the middle so you can place the garnish on, not in, the glass. Wedges not only look nice – they're functional too: by squeezing the wedges, guests can easily add extra lemon to their drink without getting their hands covered in juice or pulp.




Limes
In terms of garnishing, limes are just like lemons: slightly smaller of course,
but just as much fun! Cut off the ends of the lime and then slice the fruit into 6 or 8 wedges, preferably with a slit in the middle so you can place the garnish on, not in, the glass.


Cherries
Simple yet sexy. Make sure you choose the fresh red maraschino cherries with stalks. Spearing them onto other fruits using a cocktail pick turns them into a "flag". A cherry speared onto an orange slice is called an orange flag; speared onto a pineapple it’s called a pineapple flag, and so on. No other garnish is as staunchly patriotic as the cherry.


 
Melon
Beautiful and different. Refreshing in hot or humid weather.  Use a small melon baller and a long bamboo skewer stick.

Celery stalks and other Veggies The traditional decoration of a Bloody Mary, you should cut as little as possible from the celery, leaving the leafy end above the level of the liquid while also leaving as much of the celery as possible to be chewed on by the drinker.






Oranges
Definitely not just for breakfast juice! An orange is a great garnish for many a cocktail. First cut the orange in half, then into 5mm thick half-moon shapes with a slit in the middle so you can place the garnish on, not in, the glass. Blood Oranges are gorgeous!





Olives

The traditional martini garnish, green olives should be served without pimentos (the little red thing sometimes found in green olives) and served skewered on a toothpick, plastic sword, or martini skewer and placed in the drink. Although some drinks specifically call for black olives, if the recipe doesn't specify what color olive to use, then a green olive is appropriate.

 
 

Pearl onions
Pearl onions should be served in the same manner as olives, skewered and placed in gin and vermouth.









Pineapples

Tropical drinks are so popular that you can't really do without pineapple slices. Rip off the green part of the pineapple, cut off the ends, and then slice the pineapple into 1 cm thick rings. Cut these rings into 4 or 6 slices with slits for placing on the glass. Aloha!

Kitsch
Various drinks may also be appropriately served with plastic swords, paper parasols, fireworks, or any other odds and ends. Although men are often embarrassed to be served such decorated drinks, we find that almost anything is acceptable on the shores of a tropical island.

Other garnishes Banana, strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, mint, kiwis, cucumber -- you name it! There is no definitive list of garnishes. Use whatever you think appropriate, but keep in mind that a good garnish is always simple, logical for the drink, and fresh!






Maraschino Cherries
It's unclear whether these bright red cherries are garnishes or garbage. Although they add little flavor when dropped into a drink, most people prefer to pull the cherries out by their stems and eat them as well. Because of this, buy maraschino cherries with stems attached if possible. Also, be aware that green maraschino cherries carry a very strong, very different, and very minty flavor while red maraschino cherries are sweet and tasty. If a drink calls for a maraschino cherry, a red maraschino is almost always preferred.


Lipstick Cocktail

Ingredients
• 2/3 oz Bacardi® white rum
• 2/3 oz creme de bananes
• 1 1/3 oz cream
• 1 1/3 oz grenadine syrup
• Maraschino Cherry

Directions
Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker half-filled with cracked ice.

Shake well

Strain into a small frosted hurricane glass filled with cracked ice.

Garnish with a slice of orange and a maraschino cherry.