The Grinch cocktail is an easy holiday cocktail to serve up at your next Christmas party. With fruity flavors like melon, lemon-lime, and cherry, this cocktail is flavorful and eye-catching.
Whether you're a grinch around the holidays or not or not, I think you'll love my newest cocktail creation. The Grinch cocktail is a light and fruity alcoholic beverage that's perfect for the holidays.
This cocktail is flavored with Midori, a melon liqueur, which also gives the cocktail its green hue. Rum and lemon-lime soda round out this easy cocktail, adding a light citrus flavor. The cherry on top represents the grinch's heart before it grew three sizes that day.
Serve Grinch cocktails for your next holiday movie night! It's the perfect drink for adults to enjoy while watching The Grinch (I prefer the original cartoon version myself!).
If you're looking for a family-friendly version, try my non-alcoholic grinch punch recipe at your next Christmas party. For holiday brunch, try my grinch mimosas!
Ingredients and substitutions
Midori - A sweet, green, melon-flavored liqueur that gives this cocktail its green, Grinchy hue.
Rum - I recommend a clear rum so as to not muddy the green color of your cocktail. Readers have also made this recipe with triple sec, a citrus-flavored liqueur, instead of the rum with great results.
Lemon-lime soda - Any lemon-lime flavored soda, like 7up, Sprite, or a generic version, works in this recipe. The soda can also be substituted with lemon-lime club soda for a lighter cocktail.
Maraschino cherries - The maraschino cherry on top represents the Grinch's heart. A red garnish is a must for this grinch cocktail. Stemmed maraschino cherries work well on their own, while stemless cherries could be threaded onto a cocktail toothpick. A strawberry slice (shaped into a heart), would make a great alternative. I used heart-shaped strawberries in both my grinch mimosa and grinch punch recipes.
Tips and tricks
Stir minimally after adding soda - Soda is carbonated and should be stirred minimally after adding to a cocktail. Do not use a cocktail shaker with carbonated soda because it will create a fizzy mess.
Want to use a cocktail shaker? If you'd like to use a shaker for the midori and rum, feel free. Afterward, pour the midori and rum into your prepared glass and top with soda as directed below.
Cherry garnish - Place your cherry on top of the ice for a simple and eye catching presentation. You could also slice the cherry partially through and place it on the rim of the glass or thread multiple cherries onto a cocktail toothpick.
Frequently asked questions
Try using lemon lime club soda instead of regular soda. Midori is sweet enough on its own that you can replace the soda if desired.
Midori is a green liqueur that is sweet with a light melon flavor. It's not overpowering or strong, which makes it a great mixer for festive drinks like this holiday cocktail.
You can find it at your local liquor store near the schnapps or other flavored liqueurs. It should be easy to find with its bright green color.
Aside from the classic maraschino cherry, you could also use a sliced strawberry shaped like a heart (see my grinch mimosa recipe for photos), add a red sanding sugar rim to the glass, thread a cocktail toothpick with raspberries or stemless cherries, or add red and white striped straws.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
The Grinch Cocktail
Ingredients
- 1.5 ounces midori liqueur
- 1 ounce clear rum, *
- 5 ounces lemon lime soda
- 1 maraschino cherry
Instructions
- Fill a lowball glass with ice. Add midori liqueur and rum and stir to combine. Top with lemon lime soda and stir gently to combine.
- Top with a maraschino cherry and enjoy.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- For a less sweet drink: Replace lemon lime soda with lemon lime club soda.
- For a fruitier drink: Replace rum with triple sec, a citrus-flavored liqueur.
- Garnish variations: Strawberry slice shaped like a heart, cherries or raspberries threaded onto a cocktail toothpick, a red sanding sugar rim, or red and white striped straws.
Super easy Christmas drink. Looks cute and tastes really good. I don’t really like the taste of alcohol and I don’t find this drink too strong. It’s pretty easy to just add more seven up if you don’t want it to taste as strong. We used seven up zero sugar to cut the sugar a little. Definitely recommend!
Great drink,
I took the middle rode and use 1/2 ounce rum and 1/2 ounce triple Sec,
Very smooth drink.
Made this for my adult girls at Christmas. Beautiful to look at not so much to drink. Not good at all didn’t make seconds at all
My guests found the drink too strong. I used the original recipe because I like midori. I did cut the alcohol measurements down and it was better, but just not for me.
I made this with the triple sec like you recommended because I don't like tasting alcohol in my mixed drinks. SO good! Thank you!