Famed for its brilliantly colored petals, the hibiscus plant is a wonderful ingredient to use in cocktails if you’re in search of a refreshing and floral edge. With a tart flavor reminiscent of cranberries, hibiscus is easily balanced by popular sweetening agents used in cocktails like honey, agave, and simple syrup that work to enhance the flower’s flavor while tapering down any lingering sourness.
Hibiscus can be used in cocktails year-round, but with its floral essences, the plant’s flavors blend seamlessly with some of summer’s best offerings, like fresh herbs and ripe citrus, and the proof is in the pudding. The flower has been taking the alcohol world by storm lately with brands hopping on the trend and creating a multitude of hibiscus-flavored and -infused beverage options.
If you’re looking to experiment with the flavors of hibiscus in the next steps of your mixology journey, try one of our favorite hibiscus cocktail recipes.
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Gin-Based Hibiscus Cocktails
Hibiscus Citrus Tea Cocktail
Hibiscus has long been a popular ingredient to include in herbal teas — and it just so happens that the latter is a tasty ingredient to use in cocktails. The Hibiscus Citrus Tea Cocktail adds gin to hibiscus tea, allowing for the botanicals in each to blend together for a delicious, earthy flavor. A citrus edge is provided with the addition of grapefruit juice and lemon juice, balanced perfectly by a bit of simple syrup.
Hibiscus French 75
The French 75 is a delightful cocktail in its original form, but perhaps it’s true beauty lies in its ability to transform flavor profiles with one small adjustment. This riff on the classic cocktail combines gin, lemon juice, and Champagne, but swaps out plain simple syrup for hibiscus simple syrup for an elevated, floral flavor and vibrant pink color.
Liqueur-Based Hibiscus Cocktails
Sunset Theory
Beautiful flowers are hibiscus’s claim to fame, so it’s only right that a cocktail features edible flowers as a garnish. The Sunset Theory combines Townshend’s White Rose spirit, Suze Gentian Liqueur, lemon juice, hibiscus tea syrup, and egg white for a cocktail that’s equal parts calming and inviting.
Tropical Hibiscus Sour
Made with cachaça, Brazil’s most popular spirit, the Tropical Hibiscus Sour is simple in composition, but certainly leaves nothing to be desired in terms of flavor. Crisp and floral, this cocktail combines cachaça, lemon juice, hibiscus syrup, and egg white for a light sip with a fun, foamy texture.
Rum-Based Hibiscus Cocktails
Hibiscus Colada
Piña Coladas are one of life’s simplest pleasures, and this hibiscus-infused riff offers a new combination of flavors perfect for chilling out in summer’s heat. To make your own, add rum, lime juice, hibiscus simple syrup, pineapple juice, and coconut yogurt to a shaker. Shake, strain, add a few dashes of bitters, and serve with a lime wheel for garnish.
Tiki Teacup
The Tiki Teacup is a refreshing hibiscus cocktail that complements the flavors of the flower with the addition of tropical white tea. This tiki cocktail combines white rum, pineapple rum, tropical white tea, pineapple juice, lime juice, and hibiscus syrup for a drink that will cool you off and keep your taste buds wanting more.
Tequila-Based Hibiscus Cocktails
FONDA Rosalita Margarita
Developed by Fonda in NYC’s Tribeca neighborhood, the Rosalita Margarita is all the things a Margarita should be: crisp, delicious, and slightly tart. With the classic ingredients of silver tequila, Cointreau, and lime juice, this Margarita is further embellished by the addition of hibiscus syrup.
Hibiscus Fizz
If you’re in the market for a brightly colored cocktail that looks just as good as it tastes, look no further than the Hibiscus Fizz. This hibiscus cocktail is spectacularly vibrant, thanks to the addition of hibiscus syrup and foamed half-and-half, its presentation is reminiscent of carnival cotton candy. To make your own, add tequila reposado, hibiscus syrup, half-and-half, and lemon juice to a shaker. Shake for 30 seconds, double strain into a Champagne flute, and top with soda to create an eye-catching (and delicious) fizzy texture.
