A non-standard strong cocktail that requires some skill and concentration during preparation. One wrong move can result in hand burns or a fire!
Historical reference. According to legend, the Basketball cocktail appeared in 1947. The Philadelphia Warriors came up with the recipe while celebrating their victory in the National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals.
A few years later, many basketball teams in the United States began to celebrate the victory with the preparation of this cocktail. Then followed a wave of struggle with alcohol in a professional dispute and the drink was forgotten for a while.
The second revival took place at the beginning of the 2000s with the advent of fashion in Europe for the original serving of alcoholic cocktails.
The Basketball cocktail is named because of the characteristic movements when mixing the ingredients, which imitate the dribbling of a basketball player.
Composition and proportions:
- cognac (brandy) – 20 ml;
- liqueur Cointreau (Cointreau) – 20 ml;
- cinnamon – 1 pinch (optional);
- saucer with water – so as not to burn your hand.
In the classic version, cognac and Cointreau transparent orange liqueur are mixed, in some variations 20 ml of sambuca are also added. In fact, a cocktail is valuable for its original presentation, not taste, so you can combine any strong alcohol (above 40% vol.): absinthe, sambuca, whiskey, tequila, etc.
If you sprinkle cinnamon on burning alcohol, sparks will appear. The palm moistened with water is less prone to burns.
Cocktail recipe Basketball
1. Warm the cognac and Cointreau to room temperature, this will improve the flammability of the drinks.
2. Alternately pour cognac and orange liqueur into a cognac glass (sniffter). Lightly warm the outer walls of the glass with a lighter near the stem so that the glass does not crack from a sharp temperature drop.
3. Moisten the inside of the palm of a non-working hand in a saucer of water. This will avoid burns.
4. Set fire to alcohol with a working hand, add cinnamon if desired, then twist the glass for 3-4 seconds so that the fire flares up well.
5. Cover the glass tightly with a palm dipped in water.
Due to combustion, a vacuum is created inside the glass, so the glass will immediately stick to the hand. A similar effect can be observed when installing medical jars.
6. Shake your hand with a glass for 6-8 seconds, imitating a basketball player dribbling, then tear the glass from the palm of your hand with your free hand, inhale alcohol vapors and drink the cocktail in one gulp. In bars, usually all actions with ignition and “ball” are performed by the bartender, treating the visitor with a ready-made cocktail.
Read more about serving the Basketball cocktail in the video.
