15 Fruity Alcoholic Drinks to Enjoy All Year
When it comes to having a drink, not everyone handles a straight shot of whiskey, and not everyone should! That’s why cocktails exist, and they open a world of delicious drinks that are not only boozy but fruity.
Sure, some cocktails are as harsh as a shot of vodka, like the Martini, but others are deliciously easy to drink, and it’s easy to see why they have a huge fanbase. Who doesn’t love a fruity alcoholic drink?
And although there are many fruity cocktails to choose from, we often freeze when the bartender or waiter takes our order. Well, that’s precisely why we’ve put together this handy guide to 15 fruity alcoholic drinks, and we’ve added the recipes in case you want to try them at home!
The Margarita
Let’s start with a citrusy, orange-scented drink of Mexican inspiration. This boozy Tequila-based drink is sweet and refreshing, but it’s also quite powerful, but the pretty salted rim balances it all out for a fantastic experience.
This Tijuana classic is Mexico’s signature cocktail and will surely make you fall in love with Tequila. That’s what we call a fruity drink!
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz Tequila
- 1 oz triple sec (orange liqueur)
- 1 oz lime juice
- Ice
- Salt
Dip the rim of the cocktail glass in lime juice and then in salt for a salted rim. Set aside. In a cocktail shaker, add the ice, Tequila, triple sec, and lime juice. Shake and strain into the glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with a lime wheel.
The Mojito
This Cuban classic is not only fruity but minty. There’s nothing more refreshing than a mojito, making it one of the ultimate drinks for summer. Slapping the mint leaves before muddling is critical to release the leaves’ aromatic oils. The rest is easy.
Let’s put on some salsa music and get dancing Cuban style. This was one of Ernest Hemingway’s favorite drinks! And it will surely become your favorite as well.
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz white rum
- 1 oz lime juice
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 fistful of mint leaves
- Ice
Muddle the mint leaves with the sugar in a short glass, pour in the white rum and the lime juice, fill with ice and stir. Garnish with a lime wedge.
The Daiquiri
Another Cuban fruity alcoholic drink, the Daiquiri, is citrusy and sweet in perfect balance. The very definition of beauty in simplicity. This cocktail calls for only three ingredients and represents the spirit of the Caribbean country like a picture.
Made famous in La Floridita Bar in La Habana, this historic cocktail looks as good as it tastes, and it will never go out of fashion. It’s a timeless classic!
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz white rum
- 1 oz lime juice
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- Ice
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the white rum, lime juice and sugar. Shake until the shaker is frosty and pour into a chilled martini or coupé glass. Garnish with a lime wheel.
The Caipirinha
Straight from the Samba-dancing bars in Brazil, this fantastic lime-scented drink calls for the rare cachaça rum, but any white rum will work equally well. The rest is pure fruit and sugar.
The best part? The caipirinha is tons of fun to make at home. Make sure those limes are nice and ripe for the sweetest yet tangiest drink. Adjust the sugar to the desired sweetness, and if using brown sugar, this beauty will taste even better!
How to Make:
- 2 oz cachaça or white rum
- 1 lime, in wedges
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- Ice
In a short glass, muddle the lime wedges with the sugar, add the cachaça and top with ice. Stir and garnish with a lime wedge.
The Strawberry Margarita
The classic Margarita is a blank canvas for creativity — you can make many fruity cocktails from it! Proof of it is the ever-popular strawberry margarita. Feel free to use frozen strawberries or strawberry concentrate to give this tropical and colorful drink its berry-licious personality. And don’t forget the sugar rim; it makes all the difference.
For a modern take, use freeze-dried strawberries; that’s a strawberry margarita taken to the new century. Nothing says summer like strawberries and Tequila!
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz tequila
- 1 oz triple-sec (orange liqueur)
- 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
- Ice
Add all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth and frothy. Serve in a cocktail glass with a sugar rim. Garnish with a strawberry.
The Pina Colada
Puerto Rico’s signature drink is not only fruity but also silky and creamy, making it a crowd-pleaser that never disappoints. Once you get your hands on that sweet coconut cream, you can make Pina Coladas at home easily.
Blend everything together with ice and enjoy one of the most exciting fruity drinks in the Caribbean repertoire. We can all thank bartender Ramón “Monchito” Marrero for inventing this drink in the Caribe Hilton back in the 1950s! This is liquid history!
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz white rum
- 2 oz coconut cream
- 2 oz pineapple juice
- Ice
In a blender, add all the ingredients and pour in a cocktail glass. Garnish with a pineapple leaf and a pineapple wedge.
The Screwdriver
Not all fruity cocktails are complicated. In fact, the party-pleasing screwdriver is amongst the easiest fruity alcoholic drinks in the books, and although uncomplicated, there’s nothing more refreshing than vodka and OJ. If you think this cocktail is not on par with the others on the list, try making it with freshly squeezed orange juice instead of the stuff that comes in a box — it’s a life-changing experience.
And for a spicy and cinnamony variation, add a splash of Fireball to make a “Burning Screwdriver.” Get creative with this one, the sky’s the limit!
How to Make:
- 2 oz vodka
- Top orange juice
In a tall glass filled with ice, pour the vodka and top with orange juice. Garnish with an orange wheel.
The Cape Cod
So retro that’s now trendy, the cape cod is the best way of enjoying cranberry juice. Created in 1945 by the very same Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice cooperative, the drink really became popular in the 70s and 80s. Forty years later, this is one fruity cocktail to make when you must quench an entire crowd’s thirst. It only calls for two ingredients!
Tall, fruity drinks are coming back, so you better know a few recipes by heart, and the Cape Cod is a great place to start.
How to Make:
- 2 oz vodka
- Top Cranberry juice
In a tall glass filled with ice, pour the vodka and top with cranberry juice. Garnish with a lime wedge.
The Salty Dog
This salty and pleasantly bitter short drink is an authentic way of ordering the trendiest gin. By the way, you can totally make it with vodka. Traditionally served straight up (sans ice), the salty dog goes back to the 1920s, but it’s now often served on the rocks and is a popular summer drink.
The salted rim makes all the difference in this one and using fresh, high-quality grapefruit juice can be the difference between having a so-so drink and an authentic masterpiece.
How to Make:
- 2 oz gin
- Top grapefruit juice
- salt
- ice
Rim a short glass with salt, fill the glass with ice, pour the gin and top with grapefruit juice. Garnish with a lemon wedge.
The Appletini
The appletini is hot right now, but the neon-glowing apple liqueur used in the 90s to booze up the drink is now substituted by apple juice, the fresher, the better. There’s something special about apples and cocktails — it just sounds right, and it tastes even better!
The secret in this one is keeping it fruity, using freshly squeezed lemon juice and a nice, not overly sweet apple juice; a nice-quality vodka helps too. Let’s bring back the 90s classic to the new century!
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz vodka
- 0.5 oz lemon juice
- 2 oz apple juice
- ice
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the vodka, lemon juice and apple juice. Shake and pour into a chilled martini glass.
The Sea Breeze
A classic, refreshing tall drink that benefits from the pleasant bitterness of fresh grapefruit juice and the tartness of cranberry juice. This cocktail is literally a sea breeze as it quenches your thirst and freshens your taste buds for a retro drink that everyone should know!
The best part? You only need three ingredients to make a Sea Breeze and lots of ice. For this one, the fresher the juices, the better. Try citrus-scented vodka for an even more thrilling experience.
How to Make:
- 2 oz vodka
- 3 oz cranberry juice
- 1 oz grapefruit juice
- Ice
In a tall glass filled with ice, pour the vodka, cranberry juice and grapefruit juice. Stir and garnish with a grapefruit slice.
The Blue Hawaiian
As pretty as it is tasty, this creamy blue drink is amongst the fruity cocktail royalty. Pineapple juice and coconut cream meet again, this time livened by blue curaçao liqueur, that more than a coloring; it’s an orange-flavored enhancer.
And for an even more decadent fruity alcoholic drink, try it with Malibu; some coconut sweetness will make you feel in Hawaii!
How to Make:
- 1.5 oz white rum
- 0.5 oz blue curaçao liqueur
- 2 oz pineapple juice
- 1 oz coconut cream
- Ice
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the rum, blue curacao, pineapple juice and coconut cream. Shake until frothy. Pour into a tall glass and garnish with a pineapple wedge and a cherry.
The Cosmopolitan
You might not think of the Cosmo as a fruity drink, but it’s all cranberry and lime, so it fits the bill. Besides, the cocktail beautifully sweet without losing its strength. So, it’s both fruity and boozy.
The series Sex and the City popularized this classic drink, and it has a huge fan base since then. For a neat twist, use gin instead of vodka; it gains a lovely herbal scent.
How to Make:
- 2 oz vodka
- 1 oz cranberry juice
- 3/4 oz lime juice
- 3/4 oz triple-sec (orange liqueur)
- Ice
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the vodka, cranberry juice, lime juice, and triple sec. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
The Sangria
Because one cocktail is sometimes not enough, the sangria is often the easiest way of keeping a crowd happy. It will cater to wine enthusiasts as well, but with lemon juice and lots of chopped fruit, this is what we call summer in a cup.
Use inexpensive red wine, but make sure you use a brand-new bottle — leftover wine might be a bit tart.
How to Make:
- 1 750ml bottle of dry red wine
- 2 cups ginger ale
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 cup chopped assorted fruit
- ice
Pour the wine, lemon juice, sugar, and chopped fruit into a pitcher. Mix well and top with ginger ale. Stir and serve into glasses filled with ice. Add more fruit if desired.
The Paloma
After the Margarita, the Paloma is the most popular Mexican fruity alcoholic drink, and although Tequila is the star here, the cocktail gains its flavor from grapefruit soda. The recipe also calls for a splash of lime juice, so there’s actual fruit here.
For the best results, use Mexican grapefruit soda or Squirt. It’s not as sweet, so you can have as many of these as you want without feeling annoyed by the soft drink’s sweetness.
How to Make:
- 2 oz tequila
- 1 oz lime juice
- Top grapefruit soda
- Salt
- Ice
Create a salt rim in a tall glass, fill it with ice, pour the Tequila and lime juice. Top with grapefruit soda and garnish with a lemon wheel.
And We’re Just Getting Started!
There are plenty of fruity cocktails and refreshing alcoholic drinks to choose from, and most of them are so easy, you can make a whole batch to entertain your friends at the next grilling party.
There’s nothing wrong with liking your boozy drinks a bit sweet and fruity; in fact, most people do! So, let’s celebrate fruity alcoholic drinks and show them some love! And here’s a warning, these cocktails are all delicious, so you might feel inclined to drink too much. Just take care of yourself — these might be fruity and delicious, but they certainly pack a punch!
The next time you order a drink, chose one from the list and find your favorite fruity drink. There’s one to satisfy every palate!
About the Author
Twigs cafe staff is comprised of editors, writers, food & drink experts, nutritionists, and researchers to create informative and helpful content for health-conscious people.
