Valentine’s Day Cocktails That Taste Like a Plan

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Valentine’s Day doesn’t need a reservation to feel like an occasion—it needs a drink that sets the tone. The lineup below is equal parts flirty and functional: a lychee-and-rose sparkler when you want something light, a strawberry-foamed sour that feels like dessert’s charming cousin, a port-spiked Old Fashioned for the candlelit crowd, a raspberry gimlet that keeps things bright, a bourbon-and-cacao number for the “just one more” crowd, and a smoky mezcal cocktail that comes in with main-character energy. Whether you’re hosting, pairing with dinner, or treating yourself like the obvious favorite, these recipes are here to make the night feel intentional.

Rosita

Perfect Purée of Napa Valley

  •  1 ½ oz. Tequila CAZADORES Blanco (Made with 100% Blue Weber Agave)

  •  1 oz.The Perfect Purée of Napa Valley Lychee

  •  ½ oz. Rose Water

  •  ½ oz. Agave Syrup

  •  2 oz. Sparkling Wine

In a cocktail shaker with ice combine all the ingredients except sparkling wine, shake vigorously and serve in a chilled cocktail glass, top with sparkling wine.

Young Hearts

  • 1.5 oz Broken Shed Vodka

  • 0.75 oz elderflower liqueur

  • 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice

  • 0.5 oz simple syrup

  • 1 dash orange bitters

  • 1 egg white

  • 1 strawberry

  • Garnish: 1 freeze-dried strawberry

In a shaker, muddle the strawberry. Add the remaining ingredients, dry shake, then shake again with ice. Double strain into a coupe. Top with a freeze-dried strawberry.

Box of Chocolates Old Fashioned

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz Cedar Ridge Straight Bourbon Whiskey

  • .75 oz Ruby Port Wine

  • .25 oz Demerara simple syrup

  • 2 dashes chocolate bitters

Combine all ingredients in a rocks glass over a king cube. Stir. Rub orange peel around the inside of the glass. Garnish with orange peel and bada bing cherry.

Código 1530 Raspberry Gimlet

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz Codigo Rosa

  • 1 oz Lime Juice

  • 0.75 oz Simple Syrup

  • 3 Raspberries (muddled)

  • Raspberry Garnish

To prepare, simply add all the ingredients to a shaker, shake vigorously, strain into a glass, and garnish with raspberries. 

Lowcountry Lilt Recipe 

  • Penelope Beaufain Bourbon 

  • White crème de cacao 

  • Bitter aperitif 

  • Orgeat 

  • Fresh lemon juice 

  • Aromatic bitters & saline 

  • Served up with a long lemon curl 

Add Beaufain Bourbon, white crème de cacao, a bitter aperitif, orgeat, and fresh lemon juice to a shaker with ice. Add a few dashes of aromatic bitters plus a small pinch of saline, then shake hard until well chilled. Double-strain into a chilled coupe and serve up. Finish with a long lemon curl.

Smoke Show

  • 1 oz. Casamigos Mezcal 

  • .75 oz. Casamigos Blanco Tequila 

  • .75 oz. Ancho Reyes 

  • 1 oz. Fresh Lime Juice 

  • .5 oz. Agave Nectar 

  • 1/2 Thick Rim Salt/Sugar/Tajín Mixture (Equal Parts) 

  • Garnish with Lime Wheel 

Wet coupe glass rim. Roll half rim in salt/sugar/Tajín mixture. Combine all ingredients into tin shaker. Add ice. Shake vigorously for 8-10 seconds. Fine strain into coupe glass. Garnish with lime wheel through skewer. Sprinkle Tajín mixture over top. 

If Valentine’s Day has a thesis, it’s this: the vibe is the point. Go bubbly when you want celebratory, go bourbon when you want slow and cozy, and go mezcal when you want the night to feel a little dangerous in a good way. Make one signature cocktail and commit, or mix two and call it a tasting—either way, garnish like you meant it, keep the lighting low, and let the drink do what it’s supposed to do: turn a regular night into a memorable one.

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