Blackberry Cosmopolitan

As late summer arrives and plump, juicy blackberries reach their peak of sweetness, this Blackberry Cosmopolitan recipe will help you take full advantage of the season.

Blackberries offer a seamless transition from the well-known cranberry juice in a traditional cosmo that harmonises well with the orange from the Cointreau and the zesty notes of lemon. It’s a cocktail with a natural sweetness that doesn’t overwhelm the taste buds while being both crisp and rich as well as bubbly and refreshing.

What is a Blackberry Cosmopolitan?

This cocktail combines vodka with blackberry juice blended from fresh berries along with a squeeze of lemon juice and a hint of sweet Cointreau orange. It’s served in a tumbler, making it easy to drink while mingling at outdoor parties.

History of the Cosmopolitan

The classic Cosmo is known for its cranberry-orange taste. In the late 1960s, Ocean Spray launched a marketing campaign promoting a line of the brand’s cranberry juice cocktails, and the buzz surrounding the Cosmopolitan ensued.

With the help of bartenders in a few cities across the US (depending on which story you’re reading), the modern version of the Cosmo gained popularity in the 1980s and became a sophisticated cocktail of choice in cities like New York in the 1990s.

This popularity was illustrated by the drink’s regular appearance on the show, sex and the city, stared at Sarah Jessica Parker. While the traditional Ocean Spray recipe calls for cranberry juice drink, vodka, and lime juice, the modern recipe includes Cointreau for that signature hint of orange, balanced by 100 percent cranberry juice for a real, tart cranberry flavor.

Since then, the drink has become the starting point for new, often seasonal variations. Replacing the cranberry juice with another fruit juice easily creates a different kind of Cosmopolitan.

Ingredients for a Blackberry Cosmopolitan

For this cocktail you will need vodka, Cointreau, half a cup of ripe blackberries and fresh lemon juice. Save a few blackberries and a lemon wedge for the garnish.

This drink relies on the berries for most of its sweetness, so be sure to use plump, very ripe berries. The Cointreau also adds sweetness, but if the berries are too tart, between that and the lemon juice, you could end up with a drink that’s too acidic to drink and enjoy. If you only have tart berries, you can add a little simple syrup to the drink to balance out the flavors.

Berries, which are very similar to blackberries in taste and juiciness, are easily substituted. If boysenberries, dewberries, olallieberries or marionberries are common in your area, feel free to use them in this drink.

Best brand of alcohol to use

Quality spirits are important to any well-made cocktail, but creating a mixed drink with some fruit juice and other ingredients gives you some wiggle room to buy. It’s perfectly fine to save a little money if you’re making a single-spirit drink like a martini that really should contain premium spirits.

Mid-shelf vodka options really pair even better with drinks like the Blackberry Cosmopolitan, as they tend to have milder flavors that let the blackberry juice and orange shine from the Cointreau.

Absolutely vodka has a smooth smooth flavor that allows the bold blackberry flavors to stand out in this cocktail. It is a high quality, affordable mix vodka for a variety of drinks.

Skyy vodka is another lightly flavored vodka that works well in this drink. Its aroma is subtle and the smooth taste blends with the other ingredients in this cosmo. It is an affordable, good quality vodka.

Cointreau has a deep orange flavor without too much sweetness which helps keep this Blackberry Cosmopolitan from becoming too sugary. It lets the flavor of the berry take center stage. You can substitute a less expensive Triple Sec, but this liqueur makes the best Blackberry Cosmopolitan, adding a vibrant orange flavor to vodka and blackberry juice.

The simple drinking cup for serving

This drink is intended for a casual, relaxed occasion. While you can serve it like a classic Cosmopolitan in a coupe or martini glass, it’s much more inviting to relax on the back patio when served in a tumbler.

Any type of mug will do, but I prefer a squat, shallow version that holds 5 to 6 ounces. A smaller or larger size is also fine. Just keep in mind that the cocktail is around 4 ounces long, depending on how much juice is extracted from the berries, and is served without ice. The glass should be big enough so that it doesn’t spill, but not so big that the cocktail gets lost in it.

Garnish options for a Blackberry Cosmo

A slice or slice of lemon along with a blackberry or two is the best garnish for this drink. Other options are 3 blackberries on a toothpick or a slice of lemon on the side of the glass.

More vodka cocktails to try

• Cosmopolitan
• Blueberry Pomegranate Cosmopolitan
• Spiced cosmopolitan
• 50/50 martini
• Moscow donkey
• Salty dog ​​cocktail