While we are all about the integrity of the craft here at VinePair, let’s be honest — our heads can often be turned by a gorgeous presentation. So, if you’re looking to get in the game of aesthetics-focused home bartending, this list is for you.
Some of these recipes flaunt technicolor ingredients, intricately layered builds, and bubbly theatrics. Some are classics with enduring appeal — like the perfectly pink Clover Club — while others, like the Miami Vice, grab your attention with their playful, over-the-top looks. And if you’ve ever visited Dante in New York City, you know how enticing a tray of fluffy, Campari-tinged Garibaldis with perfectly placed orange slices can look when approaching a table.
Whether you’re hosting a summer soirée with Pinterest board-level decor or plotting your next social media drink flex, the stunning looks of these cocktails are sure to impress. Oh, and they taste damn good, too.
The Garibaldi
With just two ingredients, the Garibaldi might be the most low-lift way to bring coastal Italian vibes to any summer festivity. The intense hue of the Campari is mellowed out by freshly squeezed orange juice, which also adds a nice frothy texture to the drink. The recognizable red-orange color of the cocktail is actually thought to be an homage to the drink’s namesake, Giuseppe Garibaldi, representing the red shirts his followers wore in their fight for liberation. An upside-down orange slice to garnish completes the iconic look. Photograph a few of these strategically under a beach umbrella and you could convince anyone that you’re sipping one beachside on the Amalfi Coast.
Ramos Gin Fizz
It’s no pain, no gain when it comes to the towering Ramos Gin Fizz. This cocktail boasts a striking soufflé atop its creamy gin and citrus base, and it takes some seriously intense shaking to achieve its signature height. Rumor has it that the drink’s creator, Henry Charles Ramos, even hired a “shaker boy” at his New Orleans bar to help each bartender shake up these pesky fizzes. So if wow-factor is what you want, then this cocktail is well worth the effort.
New York Sour
A fool-proof way to zhuzh up any cocktail is to add a float on top. The New York Sour is a perfect example of this trick, elevating your run-of-the-mill Whiskey Sour with a layer of red wine. The contrasting hues really pop, and the wine adds a dryness and delightful tart berry notes to the drink. While the Whiskey Sour component of this cocktail is easy to make, achieving a clean float can present a challenge. Steadily pour the wine over the back of a bar spoon, and you will be rewarded with a picture-perfect New York Sour.
Miami Vice
The Miami Vice is the pinnacle of frozen beachside enjoyment. The star-crossed lovers of all tropical vacation cocktails — the frozen Piña Colada and Strawberry Daiquiri — finally meet in one glass in this all-star combo. As this drink is quite literally one frozen libation layered on top of another, so you’re going to want to break out your largest, most ornate Poco Grande glass for this one. While you have the blender out, you might as well whip up a batch of these for your next pool party. Your guests will be gawking at its frozen glory.
Ingredients
4 ounces white rum
2 ounces coconut cream
2 ounces pineapple juice
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
4 strawberries, chopped
Garnish: pineapple slice
2 cups of ice
Directions
- In a blender, add 2 ounces of rum, strawberries, lime juice, simple syrup, and 1 cup crushed ice and blend until smooth.
- Pour into glass and set in the freezer.
- In a clean blender, add the remaining 2 ounces of rum, coconut cream, pineapple juice, and crushed ice and blend until smooth.
- Pour into the glass already containing the Strawberry Daiquiri, creating a layered effect.
- Garnish with a pineapple slice.
Serves 2
Pornstar Martini
Sure, the traditional Martini has a timeless appeal that exudes elegance and class, but who could resist the neon yellow glow of the Pornstar Martini? There’s a reason this stunning creation is experiencing a comeback, and beyond its easy-drinking flavor profile, we’re convinced that partially has to do with its eye-candy status. This fluffy, passion fruit liqueur and vodka-based cocktail should be served in a coupe glass with a garnish of fresh passion fruit floating on top. That should be enough, right? No, there’s more: It comes with a sidecar of sparkling wine to really drive home its over-the-top presentation.
The Queen’s Park Swizzle
This refreshing take on a Mojito gets its name from the Queen’s Park Hotel in Trinidad, a haunt for thirsty American travelers in the Prohibition era. Throughout the 1920s, the hotel’s mixologists looked to create new drinks using local spirits, resulting in this Demerara rum-spiked Tiki cocktail. Rum and crushed ice make up the refreshing core of the drink, which are “swizzled” or mixed until frost appears on the outside of the glass, while mint muddled with simple syrup and lime juice evokes some bright herbaceousness as well as that attractive green color. The essential final touch of a few dashes of Angostura bitters floated on top adds one last punch of color, completing the layered appearance. As the dark red bitters dissolve into the drink, its appearance transforms.
Clover Club
This pre-Prohibition classic from Philadelphia experienced a major resurgence when mixology wizard Julie Reiner opened a cocktail bar in Brooklyn named after it in 2008. Reiner was taken by its fruity flavor profile and delicate appearance, and demonstrated her love for the cocktail with her revamped recipe at her now-famous establishment. The gin-based cocktail’s fuschia color can be attributed to a fresh raspberry syrup. A take on a traditional sour, this drink is shaken with egg whites to give it its signature foamy head. Top it with a toothpick of one to three raspberries for an extra pop of pink.
Tequila Sunrise
What’s more beautiful than a sunrise on a summer morning? A sunrise with tequila. This simple bar classic can make you feel like you are staring off into the horizon at even the most dreary of dive bars. All you need is some tequila, orange juice, and grenadine to take you there. Using a spoon, sink the grenadine to the bottom of the glass. This creates an ombré of colors resembling an early morning sunrise.
