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It’s time to get the cocktail mixers ready for one of the biggest nights in Hollywood.

The Oscars will be held Sunday, March 12, (watchable in SA on Monday, though) and to celebrate, there are a few stunning Oscar-inspired cocktails to sip as you take in all the extravagant outfits, awkward speeches, poignant surprises and snubs, and meme-worthy moments.

Put a bunch of high-flying celebs in one room and you’ve got yourself a party, so why not be a part of the fun?

Wine Mag has been so diligent in pairing each of this year’s nominees for Best Motion Picture with a delicious cocktail.

There are 10 best picture nominees this year, including Elvis, All Quiet on the Western Front, Avatar: The Way of Water, Triangle of Sadness, Top Gun: Maverick, Women Talking, The Fabelmans, TÁR, The Banshees of Inisherin, and last but certainly not least, Everything Everywhere All at Once.

We will make space for the top three nominees since they are the ones most likely to be called up as the overall winner. That will be…

Everything Everywhere All at Once / an everything bagel spice Le Dirty Bleu 

If you’ve seen the wacky multiverse movie, you’ll know that bagels are a central theme.

So, this cocktail is Everything Savory All at Once, elevating the dirty martini with an everything bagel spice-coated rim.

You’ll need:

• 1 tablespoon of everything bagel spice
• 1 teaspoon extra-thick simple syrup
• 2 shots gin
• half shot of olive juice, to taste
• one shot of dry vermouth
• 3 blue cheese-stuffed olives
• 1 sprig of fresh rosemary

How to prepare:

1. In a mixing glass, add your gin and olive juice and fill with ice. Stir for 45 seconds until the mixing glass is frosted and ice cold.
2. Dip your glass rim into simple syrup and then into everything bagel spice.
3. Then add the vermouth to the martini glass. Roll the glass so the inside is coated with vermouth, then discard the liquid. Strain the gin and olive juice mixture into the glass.
4. Garnish with 3 blue cheese-stuffed olives skewered onto a sprig of rosemary.

For the gin, go for something lekker and local, such as the Malachite Gin from Kinship Spirits:

 

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The Malachite Gin is a wonderous celebration of the beauty and wonder of The Cape Floral Kingdom with a name to honour the Malachite Sunbird, which feeds on, and pollinates, many of these exquisite flowering plants.

It’s the Oscars, darling, you deserve nothing but the best.

The Banshees of Inisherin / a back-in-black Irish coffee:

The Banshees of Inisherin takes us to a remote island off the coast of Ireland to experience the tragedy and dark comedy involved in friendship, particularly the hilariously tragic kind between the characters played by Colin Farrell and Brendon Gleeson.

The two banter over a pint (or two) of Guinness, so a beer-based cocktail is an obvious pairing. The back-in-black Irish coffee is a deeper and darker variation of the classic Irish Coffee recipe, adding Guinness for a boozy brew.

You’ll need:

• an espresso shot of cold brew coffee
•  a shot of Irish whiskey
• half shot burnt sugar simple syrup
• Guinness, to top

How to prepare:

1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine whiskey, coffee and simple syrup.
2. Shake until chilled. Strain into a highball glass filled with ice.
3. Top with Guinness.

TÁR / a Classic Pink Lady

Considered a classic in the pantheon of egg-white cocktails, The Pink Lady’s signature tartness and relative lack of sugar doesn’t feel dissimilar to renowned composer-conductor Lydia Tár whose passion for music carried a few dark secrets:

The drink combines tartness, body and a strong punch of alcohol to make a statement, just like Cate Blanchett did with her stellar performance.

You’ll need:

• one shot gin
• one shot applejack
• quarter shot grenadine
• a squeeze of lemon juice
• 1 egg white
• apple slice or cherry, for garnish

How to prepare:

1. In a cocktail shaker without ice, combine all ingredients, except garnish.
2. Dry shake vigorously for at least 20 seconds, or until the egg is fully beaten and incorporated into the drink.
3. Add ice, and shake again for 10–15 seconds to chill.
4. Strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass. Garnish with an apple slice or cherry, if desired.

Again, for this one, The Malachite Gin will add the perfect floral undertones to make this cocktail as iconic as the film.

 

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You can watch the 95th Academy Awards ceremony broadcast live on Monday, 13 March, on M-Net Movies 1 (DStv 104) at 03:00 and again during primetime at 20:30.

No one will judge you if you stay up till 3AM to play this here drinking game. Mostly because no one else will be awake.

[source:winemag]