Beach Bum

There are few better activities than relaxing on a beach without a care in the world and with nowhere else to be. And there’s a special freedom that comes from sinking into a lounge chair, positioning yourself under a big umbrella, and watching the world go by. Embracing the beach bum lifestyle is a noble goal, but there is an easier way to take part, just in case jetting off to a sunny locale isn’t in the cards right now. Because, you see, the Beach Bum is also a cocktail.

The recipe comes from veteran New York hospitality pro Nick Mautone, who’s worked at and consulted for some of the city’s best bars and restaurants. He also created the Honey Deuce, the official drink of the U.S. Open. So, there’s some fun trivia to break out when making a round of Beach Bums.

The drink features vodka, Cointreau, maraschino liqueur, pear liqueur and grenadine, plus a mint leaf garnish. Vodka is a popular base for cocktails. It adds weight and structure without overpowering the other ingredients. Cointreau is most famous for its use in the Margarita, but it can be employed wherever one desires a kick of orange. Maraschino liqueur isn’t like the bright-red cherries you find on ice cream sundaes. Instead, it’s bittersweet and sometimes nutty, adding a tart cherry flavor to cocktails. Rounding out the alcohol is a small measure of pear liqueur for additional fruit notes.

This recipe calls for a dash of grenadine, which is easy to accomplish with any store-bought bottle. But it’s worth taking the extra step and making your own grenadine by combining pomegranate juice, sugar, pomegranate molasses and orange flower water. Mix a batch in a few minutes, and you’ll have rich, flavorful, deep-red grenadine at your disposal for this drink and any others.

Like all cocktails, the Beach Bum can be consumed anywhere—day or night, summer or winter. But drink this on an actual beach, and you’ll level-up your vacation.

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