19 Must-Try Pisco Cocktails

Not many cocktails can claim their own holiday Enter: the Pisco sour, Peru’s national drink. The world celebrates International Pisco Sour Day on the first Saturday in February. Don’t serve the Pisco sour to your vegan friends. Egg whites provide the creamy foam topping the drink. The sour-sweet cocktail packs a powerful alcohol punch, so sip it slowly. The pisco sour requires an intermediary level of skill. Check your liquor cabinet for Pisco brandy, simple syrup, lime juice, an egg white, and bitters. These ingredients mix together quickly for each serving. 

Before naming the Pisco Sour its national drink, Peru crafted the chilcano cocktail. Tracing its roots back to the 1800s, the citrus drink could not be easier to make. Mix Pisco, lime juice, ginger ale, bitters, and plenty of ice. Each serving comes together in less than five minutes. The soda provides a pleasant, warm burst of bubbles and spice, and everything nice. Lime juice gives each sip a tart bite. 

Pisco punch subverts our expectations. While many punches have a berry foundation, the Pisco punch emphasizes the pineapple flavor. The cocktail mixes up easily, provided you have the correct ingredients. This recipe calls for pineapple gum syrup, something many of us don’t keep on hand. Combined with pisco, lemon, and bitters, the syrup makes a delicious and refreshing fruit cocktail.

The P’s in the PPP cocktail stand for Pisco, pomegranate, and pineapple. The punchy fruit flavors complement is the Pisco, making a particularly delicious sip. While this is a beginner-level cocktail, bartenders need to prepare pomegranate syrup before mixing the drinks. Once the syrup is finished and cooled, mix it with Pisco, pineapple juice, and lemon juice. Serve the drink cold for a bright, elegant drinking experience.

Everybody loves a cool margarita on a warm summer’s day. The Pisco rita cocktail adds a Peruvian twist to one of the most beloved mixed drinks of all time. The Pisco rita maintains the citrus sweetness of the classic margarita while adding Pisco’s pleasant kick. Pull out your blender for this slushy. Add Pisco, limeade concentrate, Triple Sec, and ice. Give them a quick puree, and enjoy!

The blood orange Pisco sour delights the eyes before it touches the tongue. The cocktail’s soft pink color hints at the mild, pleasant taste to come. Blood oranges lend the drink a berry flavor. The fruit is a sweeter, tarter variety of citrus. Mix blood orange juice, Pisco, an egg white, and bitters. The drink is easy to make, but the creamy egg white makes it look professionally polished.

The Pisco paloma is a bright ray of sunshine in a glass. The cocktail mixes the bright citrus tastes of lime and grapefruit juices. The grapefruit adds just a hint of bitterness. Don’t be intimidated by the fancy name. Beginner bartenders can easily manage a Pisco paloma. Add Pisco, Triple Sec, lime juice, grapefruit juice, and simple syrup to a shaker. Vigorously mix, pour, and sip this summer drink on the porch. 

No need to visit the DMV for this passport to Chile! This large-batch cocktail captures bright flavors, perfect for a summer party. Hot sauce lends each sip a pleasant and surprising burn. Add Pisco, honey syrup, grapefruit juice, lime juice, and hot sauce in a punch bowl. Each batch makes 12 servings.

Lavender adds an aromatic floral note to everything it touches. The plant never achieved the popularity of its cousin, mint, but those in the know love the ingredient. The lavender Pisco sour takes full advantage of the herb’s delicate, floral flavor. Mix lavender syrup with Pisco, lime juice, and an egg white. The recipe is easy, but you need to commit; it takes a lot of shaking to froth the egg white up sufficiently.

Bartenders often overlook the humble apricot in cocktail recipes. Eric Adkins of San Francisco’s Slanted Door rectifies that slight with the Pisco apricot tropical. Making the cocktail is a simple question of combining and shaking ingredients. Preparation, however, requires bartenders to make pineapple syrup. The recipe calls for Pisco, lime juice, pineapple syrup, apricot liqueur, and bitters.

The morning star cocktail is a variation of the classic paloma. Home-made thyme syrup lends a savory, herbal aspect to every sip. Making the thyme syrup is the most difficult part of cocktail preparation. Once the ingredient is complete, mix it with Pisco, grapefruit juice, lime juice, and bitters. The grapefruit juice adds a pleasantly bitter citrus punch to the drink.

The Cupid’s cup is the perfect way to redefine date night. The romantic pink cocktail modifies the traditional Pisco sour recipe. Egg whites triumphantly return to our list for the Cupid’s cup. The ingredient foams up beautifully and lends the cocktail a creamy texture and flavor. Vigorously shake Pisco, Aperol, lemon juice, simple syrup, and an egg white. Enjoy the sweet, citrus drink!

The La Mome cocktail swaps out shaking for stirring. The drink has a mild floral flavor. Apricot liqueur adds a splash of fruit taste to every swallow. The Le Mome calls for rose-infused Pisco. You can prepare this easily in thirty minutes. Fill a glass with rose-infused Pisco, dry vermouth, grappa, and apricot liqueur. Stir and drink it ice-cold.

The rhubarb and honey Pisco sour cocktail makes a delicious summer after-dinner treat for those who prefer to drink their dessert. Bartenders start preparing the drink by making rhubarb honey simple syrup. This process takes less than ten minutes. Once the syrup is complete, pour it, Pisco, lime juice, an egg white, and bitters. Mix the contents vigorously for a fruity, creamy delight.

The Lanikai Sunset Pisco cocktail captures the hues of a clear evening at dusk. The beautiful drink owes its shade to strawberry syrup and lime juice. These ingredients also give the cocktail a pleasant fruit flavor. Every bartender possesses the skills needed to make the drink. Combine Pisco, cassis, strawberry syrup, lime juice, and prosecco. Mix it all, and you’ve got a Lanikai sunset Pisco cocktail.

The chilcano de maracuya modifies the classic chilcano cocktail by adding passionfruit juice. The drink combines that tart fruit flavor with the spicy tang of ginger ale and pisco’s mild grape punch. Check your bar cart for pisco, passionfruit juice or pulp, ginger ale, and bitters. Stir those ingredients together and indulge in a spicy, fruity, and bubbly delight.

Get ready to muddle! The St. Pisco smash calls for muddled blackberries. The sweet fruit creates a lively and delicious cocktail foundation. The mixed drink offers a complex flavor blend. Elderflower liqueur adds floral components. Mint adds a pleasant, clean taste, and ginger ale rounds the recipe out with spicy bubbles. Round the recipe out with lemon juice and Pisco.

The Sacred Valley is a lofty name to live up to. The cocktail clears the high bar by combining citrus, floral, and herbal notes in a smooth and delicious drink. The drink begins with homemade grapefruit syrup. The ingredient mixes up easily but requires several days to sit and achieve the appropriate flavor. Once you’ve made the syrup, mix it with Pisco, elderflower liqueur, lime juice, and basil leaves. Enjoy the shaken contents over ice.

The pear ginger Pisco sour lends the brandy’s flavor to a delightful autumn cocktail. This drink provides an egg-free sour variation, perfect for vegan fans to enjoy. Preparation begins with ginger honey syrup. This homemade ingredient lends the cocktail fall spice flavor and plenty of sweetness. Lime juice adds a tart citrus kick. Pisco and fresh pears finish the drink off with a bright fruit burst.