The Best 2-Ingredient Cocktails for Those Looking to Keep It Quick and Easy

If you’re a cocktail enthusiast who enjoys making drinks at home, then you know how expensive and time-consuming it can be. Collecting archaic spirits from specialty bottle shops, crafting homemade syrups and infusions, and making sure you have all the proper ingredients and bar tools can be more work than anyone is willing to put in for a tasty drink. Sometimes you want a delicious cocktail without all that extra labor and expense. Enter the two-ingredient cocktail.

When we think of cocktails made with just two ingredients, highballs like Rum & Cokes, Vodka Sodas, and Gin & Tonics come to mind. But the two-ingredient cocktail landscape is a lot more varied (and intricate) than those familiar mixed drinks. Many two-ingredient drinks have become cultural icons and bartender favorites, including the Black Russian, Death in the Afternoon, and Rusty Nail, which can each offer substantial complexity with minimal effort.

For those looking to keep it quick, easy, and delicious, here are the best cocktails to make with just two ingredients — not counting the ice.

Related: 13 Three-Ingredient Drinks You Can Make Tonight

Stinger

Cognac and white crème de menthe come together in this minty and slightly sweet, spirit-forward cocktail. First appearing in print in 1914, the drink was a popular after dinner cocktail and was a favorite among New York high society until it fell out of favor in the 1970s. This drink is best served over a mound of cracked ice for extra chill and slight dilution.

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Gin & Tonic

The Gin & Tonic is one of the most iconic highballs, known for its divine combination of bright, heady botanicals and crisp, quinine-rich bubbles. The long drink may only be composed of two ingredients, but the configurations of the two contain endless room for experimentation. Try this classic combo with a juniper-forward London Dry gin and quality tonic water.

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Black Russian

Though the creamy White Russian may be more known, the Black Russian is the true coffee lover’s cocktail. This mid-century creation gets its name from the vodka spirit base, much like the Moscow Mule, which is combined with coffee liqueur to create a deep drink with a rich and boozy flavor profile. The quality of spirits are especially important in two ingredient drinks, and this is no exception.

For a less sweet option, try Australian brand Mr. Black, a rum-based coffee liqueur that is considerably less sweet than Kahlúa, a vodka-based liqueur.

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Scotch & Soda

Whiskey highballs have been having a moment in recent years, with Japanese-style whiskey highballs taking center stage. However, the simple, two-ingredient Scotch & Soda is more old-school, grandpa-core than a cutting-edge cocktail bar. It also showcases the genius of a highball by elongating a bold spirit like Scotch whisky into a tall, effervescent refresher.

As Kat Kinsman, executive features editor and devoted scotch fan puts it, “Scotch & Soda is so satisfying in the way that highballs are because you get the essence of the spirit fizzing in your face in a way that's really pleasing without being overwhelming.”

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Godfather

This 1970s cocktail is made with Scotch whisky and amaretto liqueur and is thought to have been inspired by the Oscar-winning film, The Godfather. The drink fell off the radar after the 1980’s but has recently experienced a comeback. Essentially a scotch Old Fashioned, the drink is sweetened with a flavored liqueur rather than plain sugar, lending a nutty complexity, rich viscosity, and honeyed sweetness.

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Death in the Afternoon

Absinthe and brut Champagne come together in this drink built directly in a coupe glass or flute, and served without a garnish. Writer Ernest Hemingway is supposedly the creator of this herbacous concoction, named for the author’s 1932 book on Spanish bullfighting. The absinthe lends rich anise and herbal qualities, and the Champagne adds effervescence, and a brioche-like depth.

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50/50 Martini

All classic Martini variations are essentially two-ingredient cocktails (minus the bitters, if called for). The 50/50 is made up of equal parts gin and dry vermouth, rendering a lower-alcohol, more sessionable Martini variation. Though this recipe calls for an optional dash of orange bitters, the two main ingredients can stand on their own. For a more traditional variation, use a London Dry gin and classic French vermouth.

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White Port & Tonic

This classic Portugese aperitif features white port, a fortified wine made from white grapes in Portugal’s Douro Valley. Combined with tonic, this tall drink is crisp, light, and refreshing, and often comes garnished with lime and fresh mint.

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Rusty Nail

Scotch whisky combines with Drambuie, a honey-sweetened herbal liqueur made with a base of blended scotch, in this cocktail popularized by the Rat Pack in the 1960s. The heather and honey-sweetened liqueur flavored with a proprietary mix of herbs and spices brings a big flavor that can stand up to blended scotch.

Though traditionally made in equal parts, it can help to dial up the amount of Scotch whisky in relation to Drambuie, to pull back on sweetness and let the spirit shine.

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Spaghett

The Spaghett cocktail traditionally consists of a refreshing light beer that's been spiked with Aperol (and sometimes a squeeze of lemon). The combo is a popular shift drink in bars and restaurants. This variation subs the Aperol for the boozier and even more bittersweet Campari, rendering a bolder refresher with a Negroni spirit. An optional squeeze of citrus can be added, however the crisp, light beer and bitter aperitif beautifully complement one another on their own.

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