Crushed Ice

Ice is so obvious in most drinks, be it a straight drink or a mixed drink, that we often forget it's importance or even reason behind using a crystal clear good quality ice in a glass of whisky, or crushed ice in a tall glass to enjoy a cocktail.

Ice tempers a hard liquor, and as is in the case of whisky for example, if you prefer the flavours of whisky reach your nose without the hard note of spirit lingering around, or want to avoid the mild sting of a neat whisky, a cube of ice mellows the strength down a little and as it melts slowly, the aroma and flavour is released from the whisky slowly and makes whisky progressively weak, lingering and palatable.

Ice in Vodka helps release the little flavour a Vodka has, slowly, instead of letting the Vodka hit your nose all at once,

In mixed drinks, ice plays an important role in creating the perfect temperature a certain drink requires and bartenders use ice in several different ways, crushed ice for long drinks that will allow the cocktail to slowly water down like a Mint Julep, Moscow Mule, Rum Swizzle, Sherry Cobbler and other Tiki drinks, a large block or cubes of ice for drinks that are spirit heavy, such as the Old Fashioned, Negroni, and Manhattan

Sweet Cream

Cream can be used to make a creamy cocktail, but when you make a cream cocktail make sure you whip and make your own version. You can also go for a heavy whipped cream which is thicker than regular cream and milk fat can be between 30%-40%.
For a rich and creamy cocktail recipe, combine heavy cream with one shot of alcohol and powdered sugar, then whip it until soft peaks form for a fluffy consistency or you can use it as a loose cream.

Cream Of Coconut

Creme de Coconut or Cream of Coconut is a condensed coconut milk, with a thick syrup consistency. It is used to sweeten tropical drinks like a classic pina colada.
Note: For ease of use and flexibility, buy Coconut Milk Powder and mix with desired amount of water and beat it to get either a cream or milk.

Pineapple Juice

Rich in antioxidants, this juice pressed from the pulp of the Pineapple is a good protection against cell degeneration, It contains bromelain, a group of enzymes known to reduce inflammation, improve digestion and boost immunity. In drink mixing, there is nothing like the tropical flavour of pineapple juice to add that tropical freshness and nuance to a cocktail.

In drink mixing pineapple having a fruity tropical aroma pineapple juice is a good companion for tropical fruits such as mango, banana, passion fruit, and also pairs well with oranges and grapefruit juice.

Pineapple juice is the juice pressed out of the pulp of the pineapple fruit, several varieties of pineapple are used to manufacture commercial pineapple juice. High on Vitamin C and enzymes that have been shown to activate healthy immune response, it’s a good juice to start a day. The enzyme bromelain in pineapple juice, triggers analgesic response in the body to fight pain and reduce swelling. In cocktails, Pineapple juice goes best with Vodka and is often a regular juice in many Vodka cocktails.

Vodka

Vodka is an European clear distilled alcoholic drink that has been one of the most popular drinks across the world .

You'll find it to be the most popular spirit in drink making because of it's neutral taste and absence of flavour and colour.

Vodka often replaces Gin in many traditional cocktails

Vodka is known to be good for the heart, and if consumed in moderation, can prove to be good for cardiovascular health

Note that these days there are flavoured Vodka available in the market too, and some cocktails do make use of them.

White Rum

In the making of Rum, the produce of the fermentation and distillation process of molasses is a transparent spirit, which is then aged in vats or barrels and the end result of the ageing is Rum.

White Rum differs from Dark Rum in this process of ageing, while to produce a Dark Rum, the distillate is aged in a large charred oak barrel, White Rum is aged in big stainless still barrels.

There are no legal categorisatoin of Rums and it's just a matter of practice that dark rum is used in cooking or is drunk straight or with a Cola , white rums are mostly used in cocktails.

Blue Curacao Liqueur

Curaçao is a liqueur flavored with the dried peel of the bitter orange laraha. It's been a popular liqueur for more than 150 years, the Dutch East India Company created this orange liqueurs by steeping orange peels in alcohol from the island of Curaçao and called it Curaçao liquor, unlike Triple Sec, Curacao has added spices and herbs to the orange and Curaçao comes in a variety of colours such as clear, orange or blue.

Blue Curaçao being the most used of them, in cocktails. Although Curacao is an orange tinted liquor, Blue Curacao is a regular Curacao dyed bright blue to give it a striking appearance, and thus is a very popular cocktail mixer, whenever a striking colour is desired.

Blue Curacao is usually around 25% ABV.

Blue Curacao is essentially Orange Liqueur tinted Blue, the colour doesn't influence the taste and thus Orange Curacao is interchangeable with Blue Curacao in recipes, if the colour is not important in the appearance.

NOTE: Blue Curacao being an Orange Flavoured Blue Liqueur, it's primary purpose in a cocktail is introducing the Orange flavour and the striking sky blue to the drink, so, if a bottle of Blue Curacao liqueur is something you are not planning to buy right now, you can manage with the Blue Curacao Syrup.
It would add the same flavour and colour profile to the cocktail, all we need to do is simply count for the alcohol absent in the syrup and account for it.