Why you’ll love this love potion cocktail
- It’s pretty. The ingredients in this cocktail create a gorgeous, vibrant pink drink that’s perfect for celebrating Valentine’s Day. It’s even garnished with a strawberry heart to level up the love.
- It’s versatile. This vodka-based drink is actually really versatile. You could easily swap out the vodka for a variety of spirits. It would be great with tequila, gin or even bourbon – making it perfect for really anyone.
- It’s complex. While the ingredients themselves are fairly simple, the combination of all three creates a subtle complexity. The balance between the floral hibiscus, sweet strawberry and slightly bitter grapefruit is just incredible.
More Valentine’s Day cocktails: Toblerone cocktail / pink squirrel / naked and famous / clover club cocktail
Ingredients & substitutions
- Vodka – Feel free to swap for another spirit, but I used Tito’s to make this cocktail and it was great. The vodka is a perfect choice to let the flavors of this drink shine through.
- Strawberry puree – This is super simple to make. Simple blend strawberries and you’re done. I like to thaw a bag of frozen strawberries because it eliminates the need for cleaning and hulling the strawberries, but fresh will work just as well.
- Grapefruit juice – Normally, I say fresh squeezed is best, but I find bottle grapefruit juice to be great in cocktails. Just make sure it doesn’t have added sugars. If you have fresh ones to squeeze, definitely go for it.
- Hibiscus simple syrup – We love to make our own hibiscus syrup, it is super easy to follow this recipe to make your own too. This simple syrup add a sweet, floral flavor when added to cocktails, giving them a bit more depth and complexity.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed below are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
More vodka cocktail favorites: cherry vodka sour / vodka sunrise / apple juice and vodka cocktail / basil grapefruit martini
Raise you glass and get romantic with this refreshing love potion cocktail made with a mesmerizing blend of grapefruit juice, strawberry puree and sweet hibiscus syrup. Make this for your special someone this Valentine’s Day, or share it with friends at your Galentine’s celebration.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces vodka
- 2 ounces grapefruit juice
- 1 ounces hibiscus syrup (see notes)
- 1 ounce strawberry puree (see notes)
- For garnish: strawberry heart, grapefruit slice
Instructions
- Shake up the cocktail. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add the cocktail ingredients. Cover and shake until cold.Strain into a chilled glass with crushed ice. I recommend using a Hawthorne strainer rather than the top of your shaker for this one.
- To make the garnish: slice a hulled strawberry in half from top to bottom. Then, use a pairing knife to carve inward, towards the top center to make a heart shape on the top.
Video
Notes
To make the hibiscus syrup: In a large saucepan, heat 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar until almost boiling. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Then add a hibiscus tea bag. Remove from heat and let the syrup steep for about 30 minutes.
Remove tea bag and transfer syrup to a jar or bottle. This should keep fresh for at least a week, but feel free to add 1 tablespoon of vodka to extend the syrup’s shelf life.
To make the strawberry puree: Place about 1 pound of [hulled] strawberries in a blender and process until smooth. Transfer to a mason jar or bottle and refrigerate until you’re ready to use it.
Nutrition
Calories: 210kcal Carbohydrates: 29g Protein: 1g Fat: 0.1g Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04g Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g Sodium: 18mg Potassium: 154mg Fiber: 1g Sugar: 28g Vitamin A: 7IU Vitamin C: 32mg Calcium: 13mg Iron: 1mg
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