Healthify Your Cocktails

Balmy summer evenings seem to go better with a cocktail in hand. Typically, cocktails consist of a vibrant formula of 2 ounces of spirits and three-quarters ounce each of a sweetener and citrus juice. Exact proportions may vary, according to locale and size of glassware.

 

Over the last several years, cocktail culture has evolved into an artisanal realm, says Jonathan Pogash, a bartender who creates beverage programs for restaurants through his company, the Cocktail Guru, and who heads the New York chapter of the U.S. Bartenders Guild. More people are taking the age-old cocktail formula and experimenting with ingredients, many of which have nutritional and health benefits, he says.

 

“What’s the healthiest way to drink alcohol?” is the question posed constantly to Dana James, a certified clinical nutritionist and the owner of Food Coach NYC in New York. “Everyone wants to know how to choose the better cocktail,” she says.

 

Check out our list of add-ins and low-calorie options that can add health value to cocktails, whatever the season.