Tag: lime

vodka

Mother Mule | A Healthy Moscow Mule Variation with Ginger Honey Shrub

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The Mother Mule is a healthy ginger Moscow Mule variation made with Other Mother Vinegar Ginger Honey Shrub. It's easy to create at home and good for you, too, thanks to the gut-boosting bacteria found in the shrub.

The Mother Mule is a spicy ginger Moscow Mule variation made with Other Mother Vinegar Ginger Honey Shrub. It’s easy to create at home and good for you, too, thanks to the gut-boosting bacteria found in the shrub.

Chances are if you like cocktails, you’ve ordered or made a Moscow Mule. It’s a true classic cocktail recipe that’s inspired many other drinks. Moscow Mule variations are common these days and I’m not complaining. Vodka, lime, and ginger beer are a perfect foundation for building more flavors on top of. I’ve posted a few Moscow Mule variations here on Girl & Tonic: the Irish Mule (made with whiskey), a Dark & Stormy (my forever go-to drink), and an Orange Cassidy (my own AEW-inspired riff on a Moscow Mule).

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

I’m really excited about today’s Moscow Mule variation for two reasons: 1) it’s good for you, and 2) it can be easily made into a mocktail or alcohol-free cocktail.

Okay, okay. I can practically hear you rolling your eyes at me when I say that this Mother Mule cocktail recipe is good for you. Hear me out. I know vodka isn’t necessarily an elixir of health. BUT one of the main ingredients in this drink is pure health in liquid form. It pretty much counterbalances the whole alcohol & sugar thing.

Okay. Maybe I’m exaggerating a bit when I say it’s bottled-up health. But Other Mother Vinegar is really good for you. Allow me to inform you.

The Mother Mule is a spicy ginger Moscow Mule variation made with Other Mother Vinegar Ginger Honey Shrub. It's easy to create at home and good for you, too, thanks to the gut-boosting bacteria found in the shrub.

Other Mother Vinegar is a “live vinegar”, meaning each bottle contains millions of healthy bacteria that will give the microbiome in your intestines a boost. Live vinegar is packed with other benefits, too: can lower blood pressure and blood sugar levels, helps with indigestion and acid reflux, and is chock-full of antioxidants. You can read more about the benefits of drinking vinegar here.

I’ve actually made another cocktail and mocktail recipe using the raspberry OMV shrub shot. It’s called the Rowdy Mother (are you sensing a theme in the names yet). If you’re not down for a ginger honey shrub, their raspberry shrub or the turmeric one would also work really well in this recipe!

(If you’re looking for some 100% or 90% healthy cocktail/mocktail options, check out my Mother’s Garden recipe or this Cucumber Basil Refresher.)

I mentioned early that one reason I’m excited about this recipe is that it can be easily made into a mocktail or alcohol-free cocktail. I love easy, 3-ingredient cocktails like the Moscow Mule. But when 1/3 of those ingredients is alcohol, the drink becomes rather empty if you’re going alcohol-free that night. When you use a vinegar shrub as one of your ingredients, your drink will be anything but bland.

Another perk of using shrubs as a drink ingredient is that you don’t need to use citrus. While you definitely can use a fresh lime (like I did), you don’t need to. After all, shrubs were originally used as a substitute for fresh citrus back in the colonial days.

The Mother Mule is a spicy ginger Moscow Mule variation made with Other Mother Vinegar Ginger Honey Shrub. It's easy to create at home and good for you, too, thanks to the gut-boosting bacteria found in the shrub.

I lied earlier when I said I was excited about this recipe for two reasons. I actually have a third. As of yesterday, those of you living in the grand state of Texas can find Other Mother Vinegar at H-E-B!!! *cue the Hallelujah chorus & start thanking Jesus for the gift that is H-E-B* Over 85 locations are stocking their shelves with OMV shrub shots– check your Healthy Living Department to see if you’re one of the lucky several.

Oh… you don’t live in Texas? That sucks- for many reasons- but thankfully you can order Other Mother Vinegar online.

Do you love Moscow Mules? Let me know what your favorite Moscow Mule variation is down below and, as always, tag me if you make this one! (@girlandtonic_).

The Mother Mule is a spicy ginger Moscow Mule variation made with Other Mother Vinegar Ginger Honey Shrub. It's easy to create at home and good for you, too, thanks to the gut-boosting bacteria found in the shrub.

Ingredients for a Mother Mule

  • 1 1/2 oz vodka (leave out for mocktail version)
  • 1/2 oz ginger honey shrub (check out OMV’s sample size here)
  • 1 lime wedge
  • 4+ oz ginger beer (Bundaberg is my favorite!)

How to Make a Mother Mule (a Moscow Mule Variation)

Add ice to a copper mug or a lowball glass. Pour in the vodka (skip if going alcohol-free), ginger honey shrub, and squeeze the lime wedge into the mug. Top off the rest of the mug with your ginger beer. Stir to combine. Garnish with an extra lime wedge.

Mother Mule

A spicy and healthy Moscow Mule variation made with a ginger honey vinegar shrub.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 2 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz vodka (omit for mocktail)
  • ½ oz ginger honey shrub*
  • 1 lime wedge
  • 4+ oz ginger beer

Instructions
 

  • Add ice to a copper mug or a lowball glass.
  • Pour in the vodka (skip if going alcohol-free), ginger honey shrub, and squeeze the lime wedge into the mug.
  • Top off the rest of the mug with your ginger beer. Stir to combine.
  • Garnish with an extra lime wedge.

Notes

*You can buy a sample size of Other Mother Vinegar’s ginger honey shrub here.
Keyword ginger beer, ginger honey shrub, lime, lime juice, shrub, vodka
rum

Mai Tai |A Classic Cocktail Recipe That’s Been Lost in the Mix

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Learn how to make a classic mai tai, the most infamous tiki drink that dates back to the 1940s. Comparable in fame perhaps only to the Piña Colada, the Mai Tai is a drink that everyone's heard of. But the classic Mai Tai recipe is a far cry from the ones frequently mixed up at chain restaurants and bars.

The Mai Tai is a classic, if not THE classic, tiki cocktail. Comparable in fame perhaps only to the Piña Colada, the Mai Tai is a drink that everyone’s heard of. It’s popular for good reason. It’s freaking delicious. But the classic Mai Tai recipe is a far cry from the ones frequently mixed up at chain restaurants and bars.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

Today, most Mai Tais served at chain restaurants are going to be made with artificial syrups & mixes, multiple fruit juices, and are extremely sweet. If that’s your thing, that’s cool. But if you’re been around Girl & Tonic for a minute, you’ve caught on to the fact that I’m not typically a sweet fruity drink kinda girl.

That’s one reason I stayed away from this classic tiki drink. In fact, I’ve never had one until I made one myself. My town has zero tiki bars, much less a craft cocktail bar, so any time I want to have a good cocktail, I’ve either gotta make it myself (not complaining) or drive an hour+ to the next town that’s got a much cooler cuisine and drink scene.

The only thing I’m bummed about is that I waited THIS long to make a Mai Tai. It’s a good thing Texas summers last until October because I need to enjoy the drink on several more occasions.

Learn how to make a classic mai tai, the most infamous tiki drink that dates back to the 1940s. Comparable in fame perhaps only to the Piña Colada, the Mai Tai is a drink that everyone's heard of. But the classic Mai Tai recipe is a far cry from the ones frequently mixed up at chain restaurants and bars.

Similar to drinks like the Daiquiri and Whiskey Sour, the Mai Tai’s reputation has been tarnished by the use of commercial syrups and anything but fresh ingredients. Thankfully, the rise in craft cocktails in recent years has led to a resurrection of the original recipes of classic drinks.

The Mai Tai is a creation claimed by the two original tiki masters, Don the Beachcomber and Trader Vic. You can read more about how these two men created the tiki culture in this great article by Thrillist. I think I’m gonna go with Trader Vic though, because he famous said that anyone who doesn’t believe that he created the Mai Tai “is a dirty stinker”. I don’t wanna be a stinker.

Trader Vic, born Victor Bergeron, said he created this drink in the spur of the moment when entertaining some Tahitian friends. Supposedly, one of them took a sip and said “Maita’i roa a’e” which means something along the lines of “the best” and “out of this world”.

The Mai Tai was made to showcase an incredible 17-year-old Wray and Nephew rum. There was no internet to break back then, so I guess you could say that the Mai Tai broke the world. It literally ran out of that rum. Then the recipe started calling for 15-year-old Wray and Nephew rum. And then the world ran dangerously low on that rum, too. People just couldn’t get enough of the Mai Tai. So the recipe was adapted to a mix of Jamaican rum and Martinique rum.

Learn how to make a classic mai tai, the most infamous tiki drink that dates back to the 1940s. Comparable in fame perhaps only to the Piña Colada, the Mai Tai is a drink that everyone's heard of. But the classic Mai Tai recipe is a far cry from the ones frequently mixed up at chain restaurants and bars.

Interestingly enough, the Mai Tai recipe didn’t have any pineapple or orange juice until the mid-1950s when Trader Vic modified the drink to appeal to wider tourist crowds who were frequenting the Hawaiian location of his bar. That recipe was called the Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai but over the decades it began to be used in place of the classic Mai Tai recipe.

The original recipe required garnishing the Mai Tai with half a lime and a sprig of mint to symbolize a palm tree on an island. Trader Vic apparently hated the little umbrella garnishes and wanted them nowhere near his drinks. I like ’em because I like all things miniature, but to honor the man, I restrained myself this time.

Also, I’ve gotta say it– every time I see the word Mai Tai, I think of Matt Birk asking Andy Dalton if he can make him one in this Bad Lip Reading video. Skip to 0:43 if you want to know what I’m talking about.

If you make this classic Mai Tai recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram! And if you’ve had both a modern-day Mai Tai and a classic Mai Tai, let me know in the comments how they compare.

Learn how to make a classic mai tai, the most infamous tiki drink that dates back to the 1940s. Comparable in fame perhaps only to the Piña Colada, the Mai Tai is a drink that everyone's heard of. It's well-known for good reason. It's freaking delicious. But the classic Mai Tai recipe is a far cry from the ones frequently mixed up at chain restaurants and bars.

Ingredients for a Classic Mai Tai Recipe

  • 2 oz good, aged rum
  • 3/4 ounce fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 ounce orange liqueur
  • 1/4 ounce orgeat (here’s a recipe for homemade orgeat syrup)
  • 1/4 ounce rich demerara simple syrup (with a 2:1 ratio of water to sugar)
  • garnish– sprig of mint
  • garnish– a spent shell of a lime

How to Make a Classic Mai Tai

Add all of the ingredients, except the lime shell and mint sprig) to a cocktail shaker filled with crushed ice (crucial, according to Trader Vic). Shake well. Pour all of the contents into a glass– yep, don’t strain out the shaken ice. Garnish with the lime shell and mint by placing the lime shell cut-side down and arranging the mint to look like a palm tree on an island.

Classic Mai Tai Recipe

This recipe is for a classic Mai Tai, the ones that Trader Vic shook up all those years ago. The traditional garnish is a lime shell and a mint sprig arranged to look like a palm tree on an island.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Equipment

  • cocktail shaker

Ingredients
  

  • 2 oz aged rum
  • ¾ oz freshly-squeezed lime juice
  • ½ oz orange liqueur
  • ¼ oz orgeat (see note for homemade recipe)
  • ¼ oz Demerara syrup (see note for recipe)
  • 1 spent lime half, to garnish
  • 1 sprig mint, to garnish

Instructions
 

  • Add all of the ingredients, except the lime shell and mint sprig) to a cocktail shaker filled with crushed ice.
  • Shake well.
  • Pour all of the contents into a glass– don't strain out the shaken ice.
  • Add more crushed ice to the glass if necessary.
  • To create the traditional garnish that looks like a palm tree on an island, carefully poke a hole in the top of one of the spent lime shells. Place the shell cut-side down on top of the drink. Stick the lime sprig in the hole. Remove the bottom leaves of the mint to make it look more like a palm tree.

Notes

To make homemade orgeat, you can check out my 2 different recipes here. Or buy some quality orgeat on Amazon.
Here’s a Demerara syrup recipe. Alternatively, rich simple syrup (2:1 sugar to water ratio) can be used in place of Demerara syrup.
Keyword aged rum, dark rum, demerara syrup, lime, lime juice, orange liqueur, orgeat, rum
mocktail

Mother’s Garden | A Healthy Cocktail or Alcohol-Free Drink Made with Brighter Tonic

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Mother's Garden is a healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with sparkling apple cider vinegar tonic water, fresh lime juice, cucumber slices, honey, and basil. This bright & refreshing beverage can be made into a cocktail or kept alcohol-free. Click for the recipe and to read about Brighter Tonic, the star ingredient of this drink. #mocktail #healthydrink #applecidervinegar Brighter tonic cocktail recipe | cocktail recipes made with Brighter tonic | sparkling apple cider vinegar drink

The Mother’s Garden is a drink chockfull of fresh, healthy ingredients. It can be made into a healthy cocktail with the addition of vodka or gin, or it can be enjoyed as an alcohol-free drink that’s sure to boost your spirits.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

There are a lot of cocktails out there that have fresh, healthy ingredients. Gone are the days of heavily-processed syrups and mixes– the American imbiber’s become wiser. We’ve been enlightened to the dangers of trans fat, artificial sweeteners, and pesticides, and we eschew ingredients like artificial coloring and high-fructose corn syrup in favor of those found in nature. Research done by the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2019 shows that Americans are slowly getting better at eating healthy, although this article written by Men’s Health reveals that there’s still a lot of room for improvement.

I think the majority of people do want to eat healthier. So what’s a cocktail-lover to do? Drinking less alcohol is always a good idea. But instead of removing alcohol altogether, there’s another alternative: mix your alcohol with fresh, healthy ingredients.

Mother's Garden is a healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with sparkling apple cider vinegar tonic water, fresh lime juice, cucumber slices, honey, and basil. This bright & refreshing beverage can be made into a cocktail or kept alcohol-free. Click for the recipe and to read about Brighter Tonic, the star ingredient of this drink. #mocktail #healthydrink #applecidervinegar Brighter tonic cocktail recipe | cocktail recipes made with Brighter tonic | sparkling apple cider vinegar drink

This is becoming a lot easier for the American consumer thanks to conscientious companies. There are several that forgo artificial coloring, GMO ingredients, and high-fructose corn syrup like my favorite grenadine company, Bar Smith. Having these kinds of syrup and mixer alternatives is a huge step in the direction of a healthier cocktail. But it doesn’t make a cocktail healthy. You’re spared from consuming fake junk, but you aren’t consuming ingredients with any health benefits.

Enter Brighter Tonic. A beverage that actually delivers the good stuff.

Mother's Garden is a healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with sparkling apple cider vinegar tonic water, fresh lime juice, cucumber slices, honey, and basil. This bright & refreshing beverage can be made into a cocktail or kept alcohol-free. Click for the recipe and to read about Brighter Tonic, the star ingredient of this drink. #mocktail #healthydrink #applecidervinegar Brighter tonic cocktail recipe | cocktail recipes made with Brighter tonic | sparkling apple cider vinegar drink

Brighter Tonic reached out to me a few months ago to see if I’d be interested in trying their product. A quick Google search of the company led me to a speedy reply: YES, PLEASE!

Brighter Tonic is a sparkling apple cider vinegar beverage. Apple cider vinegar is known for its acetic acid which promotes healthy digestion and improves mineral absorption. It’s made with raw organic apple cider vinegar, oils from plants, and maple syrup.

With Brighter Tonic accounting for 50% of the volume in the Mother’s Garden recipe, you can see why I can truthfully call this a healthy cocktail.

Mother's Garden is a healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with sparkling apple cider vinegar tonic water, fresh lime juice, cucumber slices, honey, and basil. This bright & refreshing beverage can be made into a cocktail or kept alcohol-free. Click for the recipe and to read about Brighter Tonic, the star ingredient of this drink. #mocktail #healthydrink #applecidervinegar Brighter tonic cocktail recipe | cocktail recipes made with Brighter tonic | sparkling apple cider vinegar drink

When I took my first sip of Bright (which I captured on an Instagram story), I was really surprised. The word “tonic” in the name made me think it’d taste like tonic water. But it actually tastes similar to kombucha. Ahh. Tonic as in the true definition of the word: a restorative drink that invigorates or strengthens.

I’m a kombucha fanatic and instantly fell in love with this new, healthy elixir.

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve probably seen me posting about this company. I actually posted a recipe quite similar to Mother’s Garden on an Instagram story. But I’ve been waiting for the day that Brighter Tonic launched their online sales because it didn’t feel right to rave about a fantastic recipe when the general populous had no means to buy the star ingredient.

Friends, that day has come! *cue Hallelujah chorus* You can now get Brighter Tonic shipped right to your door! They have three flavors: lemon lime, blood orange, and lemon ginger turmeric. I suggest getting the sampler pack so you can try them all. I can’t decide which one I like the most so it’s a good thing I’ve got another sampler on the way.

Mother's Garden is a healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with sparkling apple cider vinegar tonic water, fresh lime juice, cucumber slices, honey, and basil. This bright & refreshing beverage can be made into a cocktail or kept alcohol-free. Click for the recipe and to read about Brighter Tonic, the star ingredient of this drink. #mocktail #healthydrink #applecidervinegar Brighter tonic cocktail recipe | cocktail recipes made with Brighter tonic | sparkling apple cider vinegar drink

The point of this post has kinda been to talk about making a healthy cocktail, but you can certainly leave the alcohol out and make it a truly healthy beverage. I’ve made several alcohol-free drinks with Brighter. There are many days when I want something fun but I don’t want a cocktail. The bright (no pun intended) taste of Brighter means you won’t be left with a flavorless mocktail. And all of my alcohol-free friends said THANK YOU.

Perhaps the BEST news in this article is that if you use the code GIRL&TONIC20 between Monday 8-3-20 and Friday 8-7-20, you’ll get 20% off your online order of Brighter Tonic. How awesome is that?! Now you really do have to try it. I mean, it’s discounted. Who doesn’t love saving money?

The reason I’m calling this healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink Mother’s Garden is two-fold:

1) I first made this recipe at my mom’s house using ingredients from her garden. (She’s actually got a great garden blog, with helpful articles about two of the ingredients in Mother Garden’s: cucumber & basil)

2) This is an alcohol-free drink that my mom is actually able to enjoy. You see, my mom is on a strict AIP (auto-immune protocol) diet due to some autoimmune health issues. This means that a lot of commercial products are off-limits to her, making it tricky to find mixers that agree with her body. However, since Brighter Tonic uses maple syrup as a sweetener, it falls on her “good list”! Big thank you to Brighter for using real, high-quality ingredients. You really stand out.

If you try the Mother’s Garden, or even just Brighter, let me know what you think in the comments below!

Ingredients for a Mother’s Garden Healthy Cocktail or Alcohol-Free Drink

  • 1 1/2 oz gin or vodka (omit for alcohol-free or to be AIP-compliant*)
  • 1/2 oz fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 oz honey simple syrup or pure maple syrup
  • 1-2 slices of cucumber
  • 6-8 fresh basil leaves
  • 4 oz lemon-lime Brighter Tonic

*Read this article if you’re curious to see if and when alcohol can be consumed on an AIP diet. Before imbibing, be sure to check with your physician, too.

How to Make a Mother’s Garden Healthy Cocktail or Alcohol-Free Drink

Add the cucumber slices and lime juice to a cocktail shaker. Muddle well, using a muddler or the back of a wooden spoon. Then, add the basil and gently muddle. Add the alcohol (or not), honey simple syrup, and ice. Shake well. Strain into a glass filled with ice. Top the rest of the glass off with the Brighter Tonic. Stir to incorporate. Garnish with a basil spring and a couple slices of lime and cucumber.

Mother’s Garden

A bright, refreshing, & healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with lemon lime Brighter Tonic
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Equipment

  • cocktail shaker (or other bottle with lid)

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz gin or vodka (optional – omit to be AIP-friendly*)
  • ½ oz fresh lime juice
  • ½ oz honey simple syrup** or maple syrup
  • 1-2 slices cucumber
  • 6-8 basil leaves
  • ~4 oz lemon-lime Brighter Tonic***

Instructions
 

  • Add the cucumber slices and lime juice to a cocktail shaker. Muddle well. Don't be afraid to put some muscle into it.
  • Then, add the basil and gently muddle.
  • Add the alcohol (or not), honey simple syrup, and ice. Shake well.
  • Strain into a glass filled with ice.
  • Top the rest of the glass off with the Brighter Tonic. Stir to incorporate.
  • Garnish with a basil spring and a couple slices of lime and cucumber.

Notes

*To learn about if and when alcohol can be consumed while following an AIP diet, you can talk to your physician and read this article.
**Honey simple syrup takes 1 minute to make. Here’s how to do it.
***Here’s the link to order Brighter Tonic online. You can try subbing a lemon-lime kombucha, too.
Keyword basil, Brighter Tonic, cucumber, gin, honey, honey simple syrup, lime, vodka
Mother's Garden is a healthy cocktail or alcohol-free drink made with sparkling apple cider vinegar tonic water, fresh lime juice, cucumber slices, honey, and basil. This bright & refreshing beverage can be made into a cocktail or kept alcohol-free. Click for the recipe and to read about Brighter Tonic, the star ingredient of this drink. #mocktail #healthydrink #applecidervinegar Brighter tonic cocktail recipe | cocktail recipes made with Brighter tonic | sparkling apple cider vinegar drink
rum

Jungle Bird | The Tiki Cocktail That’s Not Too Sweet

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The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

I’ve been holding out on y’all for too long. The Jungle Bird is my favorite cocktail at the moment and it has been for some time. This recipe has sat on my “To Post” list since late spring and it’s now the middle of summer and I don’t know how that happened and I’m really sorry, okay? I’m gonna make it right.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like

Thinking of a Jungle Bird cocktail actually makes my mouth water. There’s something about the flavor of this drink that is so unique to me. When it first hits your tongue, you taste the pineapple. It’s bright and sweet. But then it becomes warm and rich, thanks to the dark rum and Demerara syrup. The Campari catches up at the end. It leaves a delectable bitter taste on your tongue that makes you want to take another sip.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

The Jungle Bird was supposedly created in the 1970s at the Hilton Hotel’s Aviary Bar in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was served as the welcome drink for guests arriving at the hotel and was wildly popular then. However, the recipe disappeared into relative obscurity until Campari started peaking the interests of American imbibers in the 2010s. This article on ThirstMag.com explores more of the history of the Jungle Bird and includes several recipe variations. One day I want to try all of these.

Tiki bars and tiki cocktails are a TREND right now. They have been for the past few years but now they’re piping hot right now. The OG tiki bar was Don the Beachcomber in Hollywood that opened up at the end of 1933, mere days after the ending of Prohibition. Since then, tiki bars and drinks have gone in and out of style but it seems like they’ll be around for a while longer. In case some of you like reading the history articles I post, this article by The Atlantic examines the rise, fall, and resurgence of tiki bars in America. It’s an interesting read. Difford’s Guide has a great article, too, and details the history of tiki culture.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

Tiki cocktails don’t typically call for Campari. Actually, this is the only one I know of that does. Tiki cocktails are known for being fruit-forward and pretty sweet. I feel like people usually fall into two categories: people who enjoy sweet drinks and people who don’t.

That’s what makes the Jungle Bird the perfect drink. The combination of the pineapple juice, rum, & Demerara syrup makes it undeniably tropical and sweet. But the Campari’s bitterness balances it all out. It’s the best of all worlds.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

In addition to being fruity and sweet, tiki cocktails are also known for their complexity, in terms of both flavor and difficulty. They usually have a lot of ingredients that are harder to come by, so the Jungle Bird is a pretty simple tiki drink, in comparison.

A quick note on the ingredients: the original recipe calls for traditional simple syrup, but I chose to use Demerara syrup. The original recipe also calls for dark rum but I’ve used Kraken spiced rum before and it is GOOD! Don’t use white rum, though. It’ll get lost. Save the white rum for your Daiquiris or Easy Coladas.

If you’ve been wanting to jump on the Campari bandwagon or if you’re trying to use up the bottle you bought back in ’18 and haven’t touched since, I implore you to try this recipe. It’s the perfect introduction to Campari. Once you’re able to appreciate the bitterness in the Jungle Bird, try making a Campari To-Kill-Ya or a Gin Campari Sour.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

Ingredients for a Jungle Bird Cocktail

  • 1 1/2 oz dark rum (can substitute spiced rum)
  • 3/4 oz Campari
  • 1 1/2 oz pineapple juice
  • 1/2 oz lime juice
  • 1/2 oz Demerara syrup (can substitute plain simple syrup)

How to Make a Jungle Bird Cocktail

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well, about 20 seconds. Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice. The pineapple juice will create a nice foam. Garnish with a pineapple frond and pineapple wedge.

Jungle Bird Cocktail Recipe

The Jungle Bird is a classic tiki cocktail recipe that's the perfect balance between sweet, tart, and bitter.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz dark rum (can sub spiced rum)
  • ¾ oz Campari
  • 1½ oz pineapple juice
  • ½ oz lime juice
  • ½ oz Demerara syrup* (can sub plain simple syrup)

Instructions
 

  • Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
  • Shake well, about 20 seconds.
  • Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice.
  • Garnish with a pineapple frond and pineapple wedge.

Notes

The longer you shake, the frothier the pineapple juice will get.
*For a Demerara syrup recipe, click here. It’s 2 ingredients and super easy. Promise.
Keyword campari, dark rum, demerara syrup, lime juice, pineapple juice
tequila

Cherry Limeade Margarita | An Easy 4-Ingredient Summer Cocktail

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This 4-ingredient Cherry Limeade Margarita is the perfect summer cocktail. It's bright, refreshing, and will remind you of your favorite childhood beverage--only with a tequila twist.

This Cherry Limeade Margarita recipe is perfect for summer sippin’. I mean, who doesn’t find a Cherry Limeade completely refreshing? And margaritas practically demand to be enjoyed on a warm afternoon. I thought I would try combining the two and ooooh man, it did not disappoint.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

I think of Cherry Limeades as one of the original mocktails of the beverage world. There’s really just something so refreshing and so summer-y about them. But since this is a cocktail blog, we need to add some booze.

I first got the idea to make this Cherry Limeade Margarita when I was pitting the huge bag of cherries for my brandied cherries (recipe coming soon) and my cherry pit simple syrup. I was wracking my brain for ways to use the syrup and a cherry limeade is the first thing I thought of.

Originally, I was thinking of pouring the cherry pit simple syrup into some vodka and Sprite and calling it a day. An adult Cherry Limeade, if you will. And while that combination would DEFINITELY taste good, I wanted to think of something a liiittle more unique. Then it hit me– a Margarita!

This 4-ingredient Cherry Limeade Margarita is the perfect summer cocktail. It's bright, refreshing, and will remind you of your favorite childhood beverage--only with a tequila twist.

I’ve mentioned before in my Spicy Basil Margarita post that I’m not a huge Margarita fan. It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just that I’ve gotta be in the right mood for them.

But this idea… this idea was really intriguing to me. I knew I had to at least try it. I had a feeling that the sweet cherry pit simple syrup would really smooth out the harsh acidity that Margaritas are known for. And I was right.

If you read the cherry pit simple syrup post, or if you’ve actually made the syrup yourself, you’ll know that it has a pretty delicate cherry flavor. I wanted to make sure this Cherry Limeade Margarita tasted like fresh cherries.

This 4-ingredient Cherry Limeade Margarita is the perfect summer cocktail. It's bright, refreshing, and will remind you of your favorite childhood beverage--only with a tequila twist.

Muddling fresh fruit is a great way to impart a fruit’s flavor into a drink. It’s definitely the fastest and easiest way to do so. But I decided to infuse some blanco tequila with the fresh cherries. It turned out delicious.

Cherry-infused tequila might sound a little intimidating or difficult, but it’s not. It’s as easy as plopping some cherries into some tequila. The only difficult thing about cherry-infused tequila is having to wait a few days for the cherries to fully steep. Here’s a step-by-step guide to making your own cherry-infused tequila. You can use these steps to infuse tequila with any other fruit.

Cherry-infused tequila, paired with cherry pit simple syrup, creates an incredible Cherry Limeade Margarita.
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Cherry-Infused Tequila

Infusing tequila with fresh cherries is a delicous and easy way to incorporate cherry flavor into your favorite tequila cocktails.
Steeping Time5 d
Course: Drinks
Keyword: cherries, tequila
Servings: 5 ounces

Equipment

  • small lidded container (mason jar, etc.)

Ingredients

  • 4-5 cherries
  • 5 oz tequila blanco

Instructions

  • Pour the tequila into a small lidded container like a mason jar or glass tupperware.
  • Add the cherries, making sure the cherries are completely covered by the tequila.
  • Seal the container. Store in the fridge for 3-5 days, shaking gently each day.
  • When you're ready to use it, you can strain the cherries out of the tequila.

Notes

This should last for about a year, but I doubt you’ll be able to keep it around for that long!
Feel free to garnish your cherry-infused tequila cocktail with one of the tequila-soaked cherries.

After 5 days of infusing, the tequila will take on a gorgeous pink color. I forgot to take a picture though before I used it. Oops.

I used pitted cherries but that’s not necessary. I had just already pitted all of mine because I was also making brandied cherries at the time. (If you’re in the market for a reliable cherry pitter, this OXO one on Amazon is well worth the $12.)

You’ll notice that this cherry-infused tequila recipe only makes 5 ounces. If you’ve been around Girl & Tonic for a while, you’ve probably noticed that I prefer to make things like simple syrups in smaller batches. This is because I want to make sure I’m able to use up all of what I’ve made before it goes bad.

Now, you can certainly make this Cherry Limeade Margarita recipe without the cherry-infused tequila. But it won’t be as good. Test your patience and wait the 5 days. It’ll be worth it.

This 4-ingredient Cherry Limeade Margarita is the perfect summer cocktail. It's bright, refreshing, and will remind you of your favorite childhood beverage--only with a tequila twist.

Ingredients for a Cherry Limeade Margarita

  • 1 1/2 oz cherry-infused tequila
  • 3/4 oz triple sec/orange liqueur
  • 3/4 oz fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 oz cherry pit simple syrup (you can find the recipe here)
  • 1+ oz Sprite or other lemon-lime soda

How to Make a Cherry Limeade Margarita

Pour the cherry-infused tequila, triple sec, lime juice, and cherry pit simple syrup to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well. Strain into a Margarita glass filled with ice. Top off the rest of the glass with Sprite.

If you’re Margarita fan, check out my Spicy Basil Margarita recipe, too.

How to make a cherry limeade margarita with cherry-infused tequila.

Cherry Limeade Margarita

This 4-ingredient Cherry Limeade Margarita is the perfect summer cocktail. It's bright, refreshing, and will remind you of your favorite childhood beverage–only boozier.
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Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks

Equipment

  • cocktail shaker

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz cherry-infused tequila* (see post for instructions)
  • ¾ oz triple sec/orange liqueur
  • ¾ oz lime juice freshly-squeezed
  • ½ oz cherry pit simple syrup**
  • 1+ oz Sprite

Instructions
 

  • Pour the cherry-infused tequila, triple sec, lime juice, and cherry pit simple syrup to a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
  • Shake well.
  • Strain into a Margarita glass filled with ice.
  • Top off the rest of the glass with Sprite.

Notes

*To make the cherry-infused tequila, refer to the steps outlined above in the text of this post.
**To make the cherry pit simple syrup, refer to this recipe.
Keyword cherries, cherry pit simple syrup, lime, lime juice, orange liqueur, Sprite, tequila