Whether you’re planning a romantic meal with that special someone this Valentine’s Day or a fun Galentine’s Day Bash, kick it up a notch with one of these Valentine’s Day inspired cocktails. From the best after dinner dessert cocktails to the perfect brunch drink to serve this February 14th I have you covered! I had a small group of friends over for a cocktail tasting and we went through many recipes, tweaked them, and voted on our favorites.
The Best Dessert Cocktail: The Frozen Hot Chocolate Martini
The Frozen Hot Chocolate Martini is super delicious, not too sweet or overpowering. Think a Baileys spiked chocolate frosty. Perfect to serve as an after-dinner libation. This one was also taste tested by my husband and received a thumbs up so we believe this is a cocktail that even a gentleman would love. The addition of the whip cream and chocolate shavings put this over the top!
Ingredients:
- 4 oz Baileys
- 3oz vodka
- 1/2 cup hot chocolate mix
- 4 cups ice
- Whipped cream and chocolate shavings to taste
Directions:
Combine the Baileys, Vodka, hot chocolate mix and ice in a blender and blend until smooth. If your mixture is not as thick as you would like it, add more ice, a little at a time. Pour mixture into glasses and top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.
The Best Valentines Brunch Cocktail: Strawberry Moscato Sangria
The Strawberry Moscato Sangria is a perfect combination of bubbly and refreshing with a good strawberry flavor. My taste testing crew felt that aside from a perfect Valentine’s Day Brunch Cocktail, that this fun and fresh concoction would be a great summer spritzer to drink while sitting by the pool, or the perfect addition to a garden party! A bonus is that this can be made by the pitcher or by the glass.
Ingredients:
For a pitcher (6 servings)
- 1 bottle Pink Moscato
- 1/2 cup strawberry vodka
- 2 cups sprite or seven up
- strawberries
Directions:
Combine the wine, vodka and strawberries in a pitcher. Place in the refrigerator until ready to serve. When you are ready to serve, add the sprite/seven up and serve over ice.
The Best Galentine’s Day Bash Cocktail: Raspberry Sorbet Pink Champagne Float
The Raspberry Sorbet Pink Champagne Float is a super simple, yet glamorous drink that is perfect for a celebration with the girls. We loved the mix of the champagne with the sorbet. For this recipe I used just a Barefoot Bubbly Pink Moscato.
Ingredients:
- Raspberry Sorbet
- Pink Champagne
- Fresh or frozen Raspberries
Directions:
In large goblet style wine glasses place 2-3 scoops of Raspberry Sorbet in each glass. Pour the pink champagne over the sorbet filling about half-way. Top with raspberries.
The Best Valentine's Day Dinner Drink: The La Fleurette
The La Fleurette is light and refreshing, yet not overly sweet. The original recipe from Lulus called for Rose water which we could not find and did not have time to order before our cocktail tasting. So we improvised with a Rose Strawberry syrup I had on hand from Monin. Our strawberry rose version was pretty tasty and was in our top drink choices. However, we have ordered Rose Water online and cannot wait to try the original recipe https://www.lulus.com/blog/recipes/la-fleurette-cocktail/. We also did not have a coupe glass on hand so we poured ours into a cordial style glass which was perfect for sipping. Either way you make it, you really cant go wrong!
Ingredients:
- 3oz Champagne
- 1oz St. Germaine
- 1oz Tonic Water
- 5-6 drops either Strawberry Rose syrup or Rose Water
- Strawberries or Flowers for garnish
Directions:
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice add the Champagne, St. Germaine, Tonic Water, Strawberry Rose syrup or Rose Water. Give it a few good swirls and then strain into a glass and garnish with either flowers or a strawberry on the rim.
Runner up cocktails:
While the below drinks did not win a “best of” category, they were fun and delicious and still deserve some consideration for your Valentine’s Day Menu.
The Blackberry Raspberry Gin & Tonic
The Blackberry Raspberry Gin & Tonic is a clean and refreshing twist on a traditional Gin and Tonic. Made with a Blackberry Raspberry Gin and muddled blackberries really makes this a beautiful but tasty drink. We added a splash of simple syrup to it, but that is optional.
Ingredients:
- 2oz Blackberry Raspberry Gin
- 3 to 4 blackberries per glass
- Tonic Water
- Sprig of Mint
- Slice of lime
Directions:
Using either a rocks glass or wine tumbler place 3 to 4 fresh blackberries in the bottom of the glass. Add a splash of simple syrup (optional) to the glass and then using a Muddler or a spoon, muddle the blackberries. Fill the glass with ice and pour in 2oz of Gin and then finish it off with the tonic water. Lastly, add a sprig of Mint and slice of lime for garnish.
The Pink Senorita
Tequila lovers this is your drink! The tequila definitely comes through in the taste. The tasting crew felt that it might be fun if you added a little orange to it (orange slice or orange liqueur).
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 4oz Tequila
- 4oz pink grapefruit juice
- 1oz simple syrup
- Cranberry juice
- Mint sprig
Directions:
Add the tequila, grapefruit juice and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Give it a good shake and then strain into margarita or rocks glasses with ice. Pour a splash of cranberry juice over the top and garnish with a sprig of Mint.
The Love Potion Cocktail
The love potion cocktail is a fun, light and bubbly drink that is not overly sweet but has tasty blackberry overtones.
The love potion cocktail is a fun, light and bubbly drink that is not overly sweet but has tasty blackberry overtones.
Ingredients:
- 1 bottle champagne or Prosecco
- Blackberry Syrup or (1/3 cup blackberries, 1/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup water)
- sprigs of thyme
Directions:
I actually had on hand a pre-made blackberry syrup I had purchased which made this drink pretty easy to make. However, if you don’t happen to have a Blackberry syrup you can make one placing the blackberries, sugar and water into a small saucepan and bringing it to a boil. Let it simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. Pour the mixture through a strainer and let cool.
Place 2 tbsp of syrup in the bottom of each glass. Fill the rest of the glass with champagne and then top with fresh blackberries and add a sprig of thyme for garnish.
Strawberries and Cream Mimosa
A bubbly, creamy, strawberry flavored drink that is almost as much fun to drink as it is to look at. While this was a fun and tasty drink, it did however, take quite a bit of prep work. So before deciding on this drink for your Valentine’s Day brunch or celebration, make sure you give yourself plenty of time to prepare.
Ingredients:
Serves 6
- 1 bottle of champage
- 1 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
- 3/4 cup fresh strawberries
- 6 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 cup half and half
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Directions:
Place the raspberries and strawberries in a small sauce pan heat on low for about 10 minutes. The berries should be soft, add the sugar and continue heating until sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Set aside and let cool for a few minutes and then place the mixture into a blender and blend mixture is pretty soupy. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a cup, gently moving the seeds around in the strainer. Add the half and half and vanilla extract to the cup and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into an ice cube tray and freeze for at least 4 hours. When you are ready to serve, place one of the frozen cubes into a champagne glass and then top with the champagne.
I hope you feel a little inspired to have a little fun and make this February 14th a little extra special by trying a Valentine’s Day inspired cocktail!
~Love Kristen
