Skip to main content

Sherry Cobbler

Photo of two sherry cobblers in tall glasses with crushed ice or pebbled ice and metal straws.
Photo by Ed Anderson

The Sherry Cobbler is an American-born cocktail by most accounts. Simply sherry, sugar, and citrus shaken, poured over crushed ice, and slurped through a straw, the cobbler is thought to have originated sometime in the 1820s or early 1830s. And, like most nineteenth-century drinks, its exact origins have been endlessly debated. One thing is for sure: the Sherry Cobbler was the first drink to introduce the drinking straw to popular consciousness.  

Some 150 years after the Sherry Cobbler’s decades-long heyday, it’s being rediscovered, both as a classic cocktail and as a drink prime for riffing. Get weird with your garnishes or omit them altogether, but whatever you do, just don’t forget the straw.

Read More
The kimchi brine is the secret hero here; just a splash of it brightens the cocktail while deepening it with a little funky je ne sais quoi.
Gourmet’s version of this perfect summer drink mixes the ideal ratio of vodka with cranberry and grapefruit juices, right in the glass.
Crème de violette is an exuberantly floral violet liqueur that gives vibrant color to this fun frozen cocktail.
Frozen into a slushy, the classic tequila and grapefruit cocktail becomes even more refreshing.
A riff on the Bicycle Thief cocktail, a citrusy, low ABV riff on a Negroni, this three-ingredient, party-ready twist features grapefruit soda.
With elderflower liqueur, mint, and prosecco, the effervescent Hugo spritz cocktail is a hit year round, but particularly on warm nights.
Native American people made these with cornmeal dumplings, simmering them with wild grapes, which were harvested at their peak sweetness.
Named for a Scottish revolutionary, a New York City operetta—or both—this effortless scotch cocktail is built to last.