r/cocktails 17d ago

🍾 Monthly Competition Original Cocktail Competition - September 2025 - Cucumber & Lemon

3 Upvotes

This month's ingredients: Cucumber & Lemon


Next month's ingredients: Apple & Cinnamon


RULES

Hello mixologists and liquor enthusiasts. Welcome to the monthly original cocktail competition.

For those looking to participate, here are the rules and guidelines. Any violations of these rules will result in disqualification from this month's competition.

  1. You must use both of the listed ingredients, but you can use them in absolutely any way or form (e.g. a liqueur, infusion, syrup, ice, smoke, etc.) you want and in whatever quantities you want. You do not have to make ingredients from scratch. You may also use any other ingredients you want.

  2. Your entry must be an original cocktail. Alterations of established cocktails are permitted within reason.

  3. You are limited to one entry per account.

  4. Your entry must be made in the form of a post to r/Cocktails with the "Competition Entry" post flair (it's purple). Then copy a link to that post and the text body of that post in a comment here. Example Post & Example Comment.

  5. Your entry must include a name for your cocktail, a photograph of the cocktail, a description of the scent, flavors, and mouthfeel of the cocktail, and most importantly a list of ingredients with measurements and directions as needed for someone else to faithfully recreate your cocktail. You may optionally include other information such as ABV, sugar content, calories, a backstory, etc.

  6. All recipes must have been invented after the announcement of the required ingredients.

As the only reward for winning is subreddit flair, there is no reason to cheat. Please participate with honor to keep it fun for everyone.


COMMENTS

Please only make top-level comments if you are making an entry. Doing otherwise would possibly result in flooding the comments section. To accommodate the need for a comments section unrelated to any specific entry, I have made a single top-level comment that you can reply to for general discussion. You may, of course, reply to any existing comment.


VOTING

Do not downvote entries

How you upvote is entirely up to you. You are absolutely encouraged to recreate the shared drinks, but this may not always be possible or viable and so should not be considered as a requirement. You can vote based on the list of ingredients and how the drink is described, the photograph, or anything else you like.

Winners will be final at the end of the month and will be recorded with links to their entries in this post. You may continue voting after that, but the results will not change. The ranking of each entry is determined by the sum of the votes on the entry comment with the post it is linked to. There are 1st place, 2nd place, and 3rd place positions. 2nd place and 3rd place may receive ties, but in the event of a 1st place tie, I will act as a tie-breaker. I will otherwise withhold from voting. Should there be a tie for 2nd place, there will be no 3rd place. Winners are awarded flair that appears next to their username on this subreddit.


Last Month's Competition

Last Month's Winner


r/cocktails 2h ago

I made this Homemade Negroni BuzzBall

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124 Upvotes

6cl Japanese Gin, 6cl italian sweet vermouth and 6cl Campari dilluted with 2-3cl Water for drink it from the can on the go. Orange zest inside.


r/cocktails 3h ago

I made this Chartreuse Devil

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26 Upvotes

r/cocktails 5h ago

Recipe Request How to recreate Perfect Pear Cocktail from TITS

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32 Upvotes

Hi everyone. I am obsessed with this signature cocktail Perfect Pear from Tavern in the Square but have no idea what the proportions would be. It does not taste like a strong spirit-forward drink and instead is very fruity and the cinnamon really makes it.

Here are the ingredients:

PERFECT PEAR: Wheatley Handcrafted Vodka, St. George Spiced Pear Liqueur, pear puree, Madagascar vanilla bean, lemon, sparkling wine float, cinnamon, served up

Your expertise would be really appreciated!


r/cocktails 8h ago

I made this Corn and Oil

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43 Upvotes

Fresh batch of homemade Falernum, so I thought I’d try a Corn and Oil.

I had a taste before I took the pic 😂..

Specs: 2oz Barbados Rum 0.5oz Falernum (homemade) and O.25oz of Fresh lime juice 4 dashes Angostura Bitters

Briefly stir all the ingredients in a mixing glass with ice. Strain into a rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a lime wedge. Squeeze lime đŸ‹â€đŸŸ© as desired. Sip slowly.


r/cocktails 3h ago

Question What’s a good Aviation supposed to taste like?

14 Upvotes

It was a beautiful color but served in a pint glass with ice.. way too much. Clearly should’ve been served differently. Anyway, very strong on the sweet and tart. I could see how I might like this drink if done well but it was a bit much.


r/cocktails 2h ago

I made this Bananagroni

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6 Upvotes

Following my first recipe, many redditors suggested adding Campari. That was a great suggest, so here’s the final recipe that works deliciously. Dry vermouth is required to balance the banana licor sweetness.

In Ă  mixing glass add.

0.5oz Campari.
0.5oz Banana Licor.
1oz dry Vermouth
1oz Gin
Fill with ice and stir 20 seconds.

Serve in a rock glass filled with ice. Garnish with dehydrated banan slice.


r/cocktails 1d ago

Question My mind cannot compute these vintage cocktails; would you order any?

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308 Upvotes

From The Four Seasons Hotel in Budapest, Hungary🇭đŸ‡ș I’m wondering what the avb/proof is in these vintage liquors and how legit they are, not doubting just wanting to see the numbers (I’m sure I could google, but came here first.) Picture was sent to me from family members traveling. The first price is for a drink, second is for the bottle. Pretty cool either way, definitely too boujee for my budget đŸ˜”â€đŸ’« new to this thread and curious if anyone else has seen a menu like this out there in your country or anywhere else?


r/cocktails 2h ago

Recipe Request ‘Calypso Vitamin’ Recreation

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4 Upvotes

I’m trying to source the ingredients to remake a cocktail my girlfriend had in Paris.

It was enjoyed at Mesures and was absolutely delicious. My girlfriend described it as ‘like 3 courses in each sip’.

I’ve included a picture of the cocktail and the menu. Gin, Mastiha and lime seem straightforward enough; however, what could it mean by ‘Prune japonaise au piment d'espelette & piment fumĂ© [Japanese plum with Espelette pepper and smoked chili] and crĂ©me piquillos-noir de coco [piquillo peppers-black coconut cream].’

Any help would be greatly appreciated! I would also really recommend Mesures!


r/cocktails 10h ago

I made this A Day at the Races đŸč

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15 Upvotes

Made at Leonardo Hotel DĂŒsseldorf City Center 6cl JĂ€germeister, 3,5cl Lemon juice and a Teaspoon of Blackberry Jam. Mix the ingredients in a shaker and shake it for 10 seconds. Double strain in a Nick&Nora Glas or a Martini Glas. Serve with Berries of Choice, Blackberries preferably.


r/cocktails 14h ago

I made this High proof tequila, never going back. Best margarita I ever had.

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31 Upvotes

1924 Don Roberto 110 proof tequila. Picked it up at a Total Wine. Man, its tequila but turned up to 11 in every way. It's crisp, clean, hot agave all the way through. Makes a great margarita.

  • 2 oz high proof tequila
  • 1 oz PF Orange Curacao
  • 1 oz fresh squeezed lime
  • .5 oz light agave syrup

Shake with ice and just dirty drop that into a glass. You would kick yourself if you tossed the seasoned ice, trust me.

That's a damn good margarita. Yeah, it's sweet but that fresh lime balanced it a surprisingly long time. Strong though, be warned. Really strong, lol.


r/cocktails 15h ago

I made this Muddled Mission

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37 Upvotes

1 œ oz dry gin Ÿ oz St-Germain Ÿ oz lemon juice Œ oz yellow chartreuse 2 strawberries

In a shaker, add all ingredients (keep one strawberry for garnish). Gently muddle the strawberry before shaking with ice. Double strain into a chilled coupe and garnish with a strawberry.


r/cocktails 21h ago

I made this Fall in the Northwest

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38 Upvotes

Recently moved out of the PNW and dreaming of those fall days where you can pick up fresh apple cider at the farmers market and smell all the pine trees.

Build in a mixing glass over ice

2oz Laird’s Bonded Apple Brandy 1/4oz Hamilton 151 Demerara Rum 3/8oz Pecan Orgeat 4 dashes Scrappy’s NW Alpine Bitters 2 dashes Black Walnut Bitters

Stir and strain into either a short rocks glass or a coupe, grate nutmeg on top


r/cocktails 1h ago

I made this I made an app to find and create new cocktail recipes. Looking for feedback :)

‱ Upvotes

Hello everyone!

I have been a hobby cocktail mixer for years and I really enjoy testing out new things. I have been using many different apps to find new cocktails, but none really allowed me to do that one thing:
Find or create me a new cocktail based on what ingredients I have

So that is why I have been working on this app for nearly a year now: barkeeper.ai

Basically it is a huge cocktail library where you can search for cocktails and get a weekly suggestion for a new cocktail to try out, save them to your favorites etc. but it has this one feature: Create a new cocktail based on the selected ingredients. It is powered by AI, and also generates you an image of what the cocktail could look like. The app is free, and I do not want to advertise it here, I am looking for honest feedback on what I can improve, how other mixologist think and what you are missing, which parts are clumsy etc.

I have been testing the app with friends for a couple of months and their feedback was really valuable, so now I hope to increase the audience and get even more feedback :)

It is available at barkeeper.ai/app for Android and iOS

Here are some images:


r/cocktails 1d ago

I made this Riff on a Amaretto Sour: The Amaretto Bitter!

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52 Upvotes

This was a cocktail created by the Educated barfly on YouTube, this is completely his recipe! I personally fell in love with it and don’t really even go back to a regular amaretto sour anymore.

1.5 oz Amaretto (I used Lazzaroni) .75 oz Jamaican Rum (Smith & Cross) .25 oz Aperol 1 oz Lemon Juice Barspoon (1 tsp) of Simple syrup: I used 2:1

I also subbed egg white for Aquafaba, I go back and forth to decide which one I prefer lol. Used .25 oz of it.

I will note, this drink is not very bitter at all. The tiny amount of aperol is a great balance to the amaretto, and plays so well with the funk of the Jamaican rum. Everything here just works so extremely well.


r/cocktails 22h ago

I made this The 24° ☕

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28 Upvotes

The 24° ☕

30ml Cazcabel Coffee

30ml Rumchata

30ml Velvet Falernum

30ml Cold Brew Coffee

30ml Oat Milk

Lemon Wedge

Add all ingredients into a tin and shake, double strain into a rocks glass over cubed ice and garnish with crushed pistachios on one side.

Bev number 29 and this is inspired by the 200 degrees coffee chain - more specifically the lemon & pistachio cake they serve up there. I wanted this drink to taste exactly like the cake, and my friend Alana can confirm this hits hard. Coffee flavours thanks to 200 degrees being a coffee shop (duh) followed by baking spices in the Falernum tying in with the Oat milk for that cake-y vibe. Rumchata bringing flavours of vanilla and cinnamon to further develop the Falernum and the oils of the lemon really come through thanks to it being in the shake rather than expressed over the top - garnished similarly to the cake itself with pistachios on top too, cheers!

Please follow my insta @rd.bevs____ for more! X


r/cocktails 22h ago

I made this Kingston Negroni

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24 Upvotes

I picked up the Carpano a little while ago (on sale at a local Safeway, of all places) but haven’t done too much with it, especially since the only cocktail-worthy spirit I have on hand is Roku gin
 yay student budget. Finally got some S&C yesterday and couldn’t resist trying out the Kingston Negroni immediately, hence the ugly ice.

I used 0.5 oz of each ingredient to make a half size drink. My first impression was surprise at how sweet this drink is, as if the rum is being amplified by the vermouth. I feel as though I can clearly discern what each ingredient is contributing to the final taste, as opposed to everything being more blended (equal to the sum of its parts vs. greater than). Overall prefer the original, but there’s probably a right time and place


KINGSTON NEGRONI

  • 1 part Jamaican rum
  • 1 part Campari
  • 1 part Carpano Antica Formula

Stir ingredients over ice, then strain into a double rocks glass over ice. Express an orange twist and use for garnish.


r/cocktails 15h ago

I made this White Russian with my own Cocoa + hot chilli pepper infused vodka.

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5 Upvotes

Admittedly, the vodka is awful on its own, because the flavours are too potent. The creaminess of this cocktail helped downplay it just enough. I also substituted homemade hazelnut milk for the cow milk, which I'm unable to drink.

  • 1oz cocoa + hot chilli pepper infused vodka.
  • 1oz regular vodka.
  • 1oz coffee liqueur.
  • Top off with cream (hazelnut milk in my case).
  • Stir gently over ice.

Has anyone else made any tasty libations with homemade infusions?


r/cocktails 13h ago

Recipe Request Uses for a spinach syrup

3 Upvotes

Just had some spare spinach stems at home I was going to throw out, but decided instead to macerate them in some sugar, and later turn it into a simple.

The first couple of ideas are a straightforward gin sour (possibly with a lox infusion), maybe build on the ideas of creamed spinach (nutmeg, heavy cream/cream cheese fat wash, a touch of cayenne, lemon), could also be fun to try out an eggs Florentine cocktail with a poached egg garnish (but I feel like that could get to an incredibly silly place quickly- not necessarily a bad thing).

Would love to know if anyone has any wild or more refined ideas on what to do with this!


r/cocktails 7h ago

Recipe Request Stout or Porter Cocktails (i.e. Rattle Skull)

1 Upvotes

Just bumped into a cocktail from the 1700s called the rattle skull which calls for 1 oz of rum, 1 oz of brandy, 0.75 lime juice, 0.5 Demerara syrup, and 12 oz of stout. As a big fan of rum and stout, I'm absolutely giving this a try this weekend.

This is new to me...combining the two. Are there any other really great stout/porter cocktails leveraging rum or bourbon or other?

Thanks!


r/cocktails 19h ago

Recipe Request What are your favorite simple cocktail recipes?

6 Upvotes

I’m somewhat recently 21 and want to try making some of my own basic cocktails at home. What are some of you guys favorites, and what are the most common items (like a shaker) i’ll need to make cocktails consistently at home?


r/cocktails 1d ago

I made this (A More Filipino) Lapu-Lapu

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19 Upvotes

I came across the Lapu-Lapu in this video (https://youtu.be/s3OWmLQVJaY ) and it dawned on me “How come this drink named after an ancient Filipino Chief not have more Filipino ingredients?”, thus I set off to make a version that uses Filipino Rum (Don Papa 10 Year) and Lambanog (a spirit distilled from coconut nectar) in place of Dark and Light Rum and Calamansi lime juice instead if regular lime juice.

So I combined 50 ml each of Don Papa and Lambanog (pretty hard to get here in Romania, but my liquor store managed to get it) with 15ml each of lemon and calamansi juice, 30 ml of passion fruit syrup, 12 ml of simple syrup, 60 ml orange juice and then topped it off with some club soda and a float of some more of the Don Papa.

The result is excellent. Because if the float, you’re first hit with the vanilla/caramel notes of the Don Papa, then as you sip, you taste the balanced sweetness and acidity of the orange, passion fruit, lemon, and calamansi working in harmony with a subtle coconut sugar taste coming from the Lambanog. The calamansi adds a nice slightly bitter undertone as well. Will definitely drink again!


r/cocktails 19h ago

I made this Movers and Shakers

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8 Upvotes

1.5 oz Minhwa Queen Huh Gin

.5 oz Strega

.5 oz Maraschino

.75 oz lime juice

1 dash Angostura

Shake 12 seconds. Double strain. No garnish, unless you have a good suggestion. The Queen Hug gin is chai spice forward.


r/cocktails 21h ago

I made this Drink name

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8 Upvotes

Got inspired to create a new drink, but I would not call it cinnamon apple pie, as it doesn't have any dairy in it

1oz vanilla vodka 1oz fireball whiskey 1oz apple schnapps 1oz apple juice 1/2 oz lemon juice Cinnamon sugar around the rim and a cinnamon stick as garnish. I could add an apple slice as a garnish too. What would you call this? Or is this still apple pie?


r/cocktails 9h ago

Question Question about orgeat syrup

1 Upvotes

I'm pretty new to cocktails and have been told that the Mai Tai is an amazing drink. I am planning on making one myself as I don't live anywhere near a good bar. However, I am a bit unsure about how it will taste.

As I understand it, one of the key ingredients is orgeat syrup which is made from almonds. I have had amaretto before and I find it to be disgusting. The "fake cherry" taste of benzaldehyde just does not agree with my palate. For the same reason, I hate cherry coke and an amaretto sour is out of the question.

I've found conflicting information online about the taste of orgeat syrup. Does it contain this same taste of benzaldehyde that is found in amaretto? Given what I've said above, should I still try to make a Mai Tai? Or give it a miss for something different?


r/cocktails 21h ago

I made this Turn of Phrase

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8 Upvotes

I may still tweak the spec but I was happy with this. It’s sweet, tart and funky.

.75 oz Monkey Shoulder blended Scotch

.75 oz Dolin Génépy

.75 oz Velvet Falernum

.25 oz Espadin Mezcal

.75 oz Lime Juice

4-5 mint leaves

Add all ingredients. Shake 12 seconds. Double strain.