Red, White & Blue Cocktail Ideas For July 4th

Adult beverages are common on Independence Day. A way to perhaps be extra festive on the 4th of July is to incorporate the colors red, white and blue into your holiday cocktail.

Two alcoholic staples, red grenadine and blue curacao, help make this possible in a variety of ways. Along with a twist on the original margarita and pina colada. 

Here are four “Independence Day” inspired cocktail ideas to consider if you are having some people over for a barbeque, or if you need a holiday refreshment for you and a friend for the afternoon.

Firecracker Margarita

1.5 to 2 parts Tequila

1-ounce Lime Juice

1-ounce Blue Curaçao

Light Corn Syrup

Rim: Red Pop Rocks

For the pop rocks rim, coat the edge of a margarita glass with light corn syrup and then dip it into the Pop Rocks candy.

To create the drink, shake the tequila, lime juice and blue curacao over ice and then pour into glass rimmed with Pop Rocks candy.

Fourth Of July Cocktail

1-ounce Blue Curacao

1-ounce Peach Schnapps

1-ounce Clear Rum

3-4 ounces Club Soda

1 Maraschino Cherry

The Fourth of July Cocktail is your simple take on a drink for the holiday. Just fill a glass with ice, add blue curacao, peach schnapps, and clear rum then top with club soda and top with a cherry.

4th Of July Raspberry America Cocktail

1-ounce Raspberry Vodka

1/2 ounce Sweet and Sour

1/2 ounce Grenadine

1/2 ounce Blue Raspberry Vodka

Lemon-Lime Soda

Raspberries

Rim: Red Sugar

The raspberries in this cocktail paired with the red sugar, blue vodka, and grenadine make for a fun Fourth of July drink.

Start by adding red-colored sugar to the rim of your glass. Combine glass with ice, raspberry vodka, sweet & sour, and lemon-lime soda. Add ice and raspberries to your glass then add in your alcohol mix. For the “patriotic touch,” add a drizzle of grenadine syrup into the mix and float a 1/2 ounce of blue raspberry vodka on top.

Patriotic Pina Coladas

1 can Coconut Milk

1 can Coconut Cream

3-4 cups Frozen Pineapple (freeze fresh pineapple, or drain 2 cans of diced pineapple and freeze, or use frozen pineapple from your grocery store’s freezer aisle)

1/2 cup Rum

Ice

Pineapple juice to taste

Splash of Grenadine, for serving

Splash of Blue curacao, for serving

Garnish: Firecracker popsicle

The recipe says to blend all ingredients, minus grenadine and blue curacao, and add ice to thicken and pineapple juice. For the red and blue color, slowly add a splash of grenadine and blue curacao to create a mixed-in/layering effect and then top it with a firecracker popsicle.