Candra Drinks

🍸 Cocktail Recipes [booze & no booze]
🍹 Skills and Techniques
📖 Drinks Education

09/24/2026

We’re holding on to the end of summer by any means we can, so we used the excuse of National Punch Day to gather some modern Punch Recipes for you to try that are long, refreshing and perfect for the last days of sunshine.

- Russian Summer Punch
- Mayflower Punch
- Indian Summer Punch

Are you dreaming of sweater weather or joining us?

09/09/2026

Sometimes you can learn as much about how TO DO something by learning what NOT to do. So this got us thinking, what are the telltale signs we spot when someone’s not an experienced professional?

We’ve interviewed many bartenders for jobs over the years, and within seconds you can tell if someone has stretched the truth of what their experience behind the bar is.

Want to read more, head to our link in bio and join our Substack!

08/24/2026

We’re well into the season of summer hosting, blue skies, and backyard barbecuing. Some would argue we’re fast approaching the end…. We’re holding on!!!

While the cooler has likely already been packed with the usual beers and bubbles, those looking to serve something refreshing and eye catching need to step up their game.

Look, we know everyone has a standard spirit-and-mixer recipe up their sleeve. But frankly? You haven’t had garden cocktails until you’ve tried these. Whether you’re lounging on a sun-drenched patio, looking for the perfect get together serve, or trying to match the smoky intensity of the grill, these drinks are absolute game-changers.

Bright, fresh, citrusy, and deeply herbaceous, they are guaranteed to completely redefine your summer drinking.

Cucumber Gimlet
Honey Rosemary Sour
Gin Basil Smash
Mint Julep
Verde Collins

Then of course, you have the tried and true classics that have been on everyone’s lips this summer

Dirty Martini but make it fancy!
Margarita
Hugo Spritz

All recipes are on our site and of course, we have a calculator to help you figure out how much you need buy to host all your guests! It will also make you a personalized shopping list if you add them all to your account!

08/19/2026

Ice is vital to making great drinks. It opens up flavours with the power of dilution and makes them crisp and refreshing by making them deliciously cold. Here is a simple little rule to help when handling ice:

More ice = Colder Liquids

Colder Liquids = Slower Melting of Ice

If you hear anyone say, “just a few cubes of ice in my drink please, I don’t want it getting too watery” you now know how to explain the science to them.

When it comes to ice, how you make it, use it, buy it or handle it, will have a profound effect on your drink’s quality.

We’re here to guide you through the fundamentals of ice along with the key varieties, how to produce them and how to use them. All so that you can make better drinks.

08/18/2026

The Mojito is rivalled only by the Daiquiri as Cuba’s most famous cocktail.

However, its origins are somewhat murky and not conclusive, but it has a spiritual home in the Havana bar of La Bodeguita del Medio that opened in 1942.

A well made Mojito also has what we call the ‘sizzle effect’. The name given to any drink or dish that goes out into a bar or restaurant and makes people turn their heads and say, ‘I want that!’

The Mojito is not a particularly difficult drink to make, as long as a little care and attention is taken. Yet, to make it look beautiful and taste great does take some work, and a good few touches (ie. how many times you have to ‘touch’ the drink to make it. You want to make any drinks with as few ‘touches’ as possible, it makes you faster and more efficient!), so it’s not a particularly quick drink to make.

On top of this, you have to make each of them individually in their own glass. You can’t simply shake or stir multiple together at the same time and then strain out into multiple glasses.

It’s a labour of love and we’re into it!

08/13/2026

Enjoying a drink is synonymous with the Navy for a number of reasons. We’ve already discussed the Navy’s love of gin, but the rum ‘tot’ was the daily ration of rum available to each sailor starting in the mid 1600s. The initial ration was an eyewatering half pint of high strength rum per day. This ration was then ‘moderated’ in 1740 by Admiral Edward Vernon aka ‘Old Grog’ to half a pint of rum diluted with water. The resulting combination of rum and water was named Grog after the admiral and it’s where the saying feeling ‘groggy’ comes from.

The ration was reduced to a quarter then an eighth of a pint through the first half of the 1800s before being abandoned in the 1970s. Keeping sailors drunk was at first part of stopping them from organizing and taking over ships as many sailors were forced into service, and if well organised could easily overrun a ship through strength of numbers. Later, it was seen as a treat and a moral boost.

Clearly as the Navy modernised and became more professional the excessive supply of rum was unsurprisingly seen as more of a hindrance to operational effectiveness.

08/09/2026

Cordials…what are they? They seem like syrups, aren’t they just syrups?!

Well, that’s because essentially they are. HOWEVER, to be a Cordial, rather than a syrup, there should be some notion that it’s been produced with a “health benefit” in mind. A cordial being a way to preserve and ultimately deliver a ‘medicinal’ ingredient to the imbiber.

Probably the most famous cordial of all is the Lime Cordial, thanks in no small part to the enduring fame of the classic Gimlet cocktail.

Lime cordial was taken onboard ship by the British Royal Navy from 1867, thanks to the Merchant Shipping Act. This was part of the Navy’s ongoing battle with the lethal effects of scurvy. A condition brought on by a lack of vitamin C in the diet. This naturally put sailors on long voyages, with limited access to fresh ingredients, at high risk. If left unchecked, scurvy will eventually kill you in a most unpleasant fashion, and would decimate crews on longer ocean voyages.

Cordial went on to save many lives! Learn the history, how to make it and some delicious cocktails to use it in with ‘The Weekly Sip’. Our free newsletter on substack! Another reason to look forward to Friday! 🍸

07/17/2026

The Spanish aren’t just good at football, they’re good at cocktails too!

Make these 4 delicious Spanish cocktails to sip whilst cheering on your favourite team (Spain) this Sunday!

Sorry to our Argentinian friends, but as one of our founders grew up in Spain, we’re going to be cheering on Spain this Sunday for the World Cup Final.

Best of luck to both teams, looking forward to a great game!⚽️

07/01/2026

Wimbledon is here. You probably knew that, but what you probably didn’t know, is that it’s also Fruit Cup season! “WTF is Fruit Cup?!” We hear you shout. Well, it’s a delicious and summery bottled cocktail. The most famous one you can buy already bottled on the shelf is Pimm’s. Does that help explain?!

Fruit Cup season peaks in the height of summer, and it’s as quintessential to the English Summer as Cricket or Strawberries and Cream. It’s deliciously flavoursome. Typically served long over ice with a sparkling mixer, fruit, herbs and cucumber.

Often the mix will be made up in large pitchers, perfect for group service at garden parties, weddings and the like. It’s low ABV (for a cocktail) and highly refreshing, making it perfect for sipping during the hot days of summer.

We think Fruit Cups are delicious, and we want you, wherever you are, to enjoy its delights too. So we thought the best thing we could do was to write a few different versions of Fruit Cup for you to make yourselves, so you and your friends can enjoy a glass of it, wherever you are in the world.

Address

7855 McCracken Pike
Versailles, KY
40383

Website

http://www.Candradrinks.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Candra Drinks posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Candra Drinks:

Want your business to be the top-listed food & beverage service in Versailles?