National Cosmopolitan Day

If a refreshing drink seems pretty good for you right now, slip on a pair of Manolo Blahnik designer shoes and get ready to raise your martini. May 7th is National Cosmopolitan Day!

Cosmopolitans are probably one of the most famous cocktails today, where people can hang out at night and have a little fun at night while dancing, laughing and singing in clubs.  For the interesting people who like to drink cosmo often or just occasionally, this day is definitely worth celebrating! It is time for National Cosmopolitan Day!

History of National Cosmopolitan Day

Cosmopolitans — cosmo for short — are served and infiltrated on National Cosmopolitan Day. They are made with vodka (usually vodka citron), three glasses (usually Cointreau), cranberry juice, and freshly squeezed lemon juice. They are usually shaken, but stirred, and served in a martini glass. Lemon or orange twists are sometimes used for garnish.

It is still not fully known who made it or when they created it, and there are many stories related to the birth of this drink. A simple trace of cosmopolitans says they come from vodka gimlets, which Cointreau adds to them to become kamikazes, with cranberry juice added to them to make them spacemen. One of the first recipes to have "international" in its name was the international chrysanthemum, which appeared in the Pioneers of Mixing at Elite Bars 1903-1933 in 1934. It calls for gin, Cointreau, lemonade and poker- homemade raspberry syrup.

According to one story, bartender Neal Murray created an international treat in 1975, at Cork and Cleaver, a steakhouse outside of Minneapolis. He claims to have added cranberry juice to his kamikaze drink, and the first patron to try it exclaimed "it's so international." Cranberries are a staple in the area around Provincetown, Massachusetts, and another account says the drink started popping up in the gay community in Provincetown.

Another story goes that Cheryl Cook of the now closed Strand Restaurant in South Beach, Florida, created a world famous drink in 1985 or 1986. She claims that many people ordered a martini to hold a martini, so she decided to create a drink in the glass that would appeal to a wider range of people. Her original recipe calls for "Absolut Citron, a small amount of Triple sec, a drop of Lemon Rose and just enough cranberries to give it a nice pink color." The Absolut Citron wasn't available until 1988, but it was on trial sale in Miami at the time.

John Caine is recognized for bringing the drink to the West and popularizing it in San Francisco after he moved to the city from Cleveland in 1987 and began serving it at Julie's Supper Club. The internationally recognized version, similar to Cheryl Cook's, is believed to have been created at The Odeon restaurant in Manhattan by Toby Cecchini and Melissa Huffsmith-Roth in 1988 or 1989. Huffsmith-Roth is believed to have demonstrated a drink version for Cecchini that her friends had in San Francisco. Cecchini recreated it, bringing in Cointreau and fresh lemonade, and using the newly available Absolut Citron. Cecchini first started serving it to employees and then the authorities started asking for it. Since then, it spreads to the rest of lower Manhattan. There is another story that says bartender Dale DeGroff created the San Francisco version in a similar way.

It's not clear if spacewalkers started in Provincetown, New York, Miami, San Francisco, or somewhere else, but what is known is that they became popular in the 1990s. This is even more so. enhanced later in the decade when they became a staple in Sex and the City, often ordered by Carrie Bradshaw, the character played by Sarah Jessica Parker.

How to Celebrate National Cosmopolitan Day

• Create a Cosmopolitan at home

Of course, the most obvious way to celebrate this day is to indulge in Cosmopolitan, which just sounds harder to do than it is. Don't be afraid to try this amazing recipe that can be easily made at home:

In a cocktail shaker, mix 1 1/2 ounces vodka (or citrus vodka), 1 ounce Cointreau orange liqueur, 1/2 ounce lemon juice (fresh), and 1/4 ounce cranberry juice. Pour into a chilled cocktail dipped in sugar, then garnish with orange zest and enjoy!

• Celebrate with pink

For many people, one of their favorite things about the Cosmo is its color. The cranberry juice in the drink gives it the perfect bright pink color. And a proper celebration for the day would definitely include dressing up from head to toe in Cosmo Pink! Dive into that wardrobe and choose a hot pink ensemble, a Fuschia blouse, or a pink scarf that gives an all-day vibe. Other fun ways to get in on the Cosmo Day vibe can be by decorating your home, car, or office with all sorts of different things in pink.

• Get Creative with Cosmopolitans

Just because this drink has a basic recipe doesn't mean it always has to be the same! Take it to the next level by including unique and different ingredients that allow Cosmo to completely shine! Try these ideas for something unique with this classic pink drink:

Cosmopolitan white: Uncomfortable to drink something too… pink? Well, this version may be suitable! Simply use white cranberry juice instead of the pink version and, for fun, add a dash of flavor by using citrus vodka.

City Flowers Cosmopolitan: Instead of cranberries, enjoy the floral flavor by including elderberry liqueur with lemon and grapefruit juice.

Cosmopolitan Green Kiwi: Mindoro Melon liqueur, lemonade, white grape juice and delightful kiwi fruit pieces make this drink something super special.

French Cosmopolitan: Making things a bit more complicated, this drink replaces Cointreau and uses Grand Marinier as the orange liqueur. Then, garnish with orange, lemon or lime zest.

• Share Cosmo Day with your friends

It seems that for International Space Day to be a celebration in its own right, it needs to be shared! Invite some co-workers out for a drink after work, or bring some friends and invite them out to Cosmopolitans after dinner. Let everyone know that it's Cosmo Day and don't forget to share pictures of those luscious cocktails on social media with your friends!