The Grasshopper recipe
for your table
Add all ingredients with plenty of ice to a shaker.
Shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Cream needs some force.
Double-strain into a chilled coupe or coupette.
Garnish with a mint leaf or some grated chocolate.
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The story
The Grasshopper was created around 1918 by Philip Guichet of Tujague's, the venerable restaurant in New Orleans' French Quarter, reportedly for a cocktail competition in New York where it came second. Its grasshopper-green color gave it its name. In the fifties and sixties, it became America's ultimate after-dinner drink, especially in the Midwest, where it became a 'supper club' institution when blended with ice. Tujague's still serves it today, with a splash of brandy as a secret finishing touch.
The right glass
This creamy classic belongs in an elegant stemmed glass: a 16 to 17 cl coupe or small coupette. The pastel green color against clear crystal is exactly the retro look this cocktail calls for. Smaller is better here. The Grasshopper is an after-dinner drink, not a session drink. A set of coupette glasses also looks beautiful alongside any dessert buffet. Serving it as dessert with vanilla ice cream? Take a look at our dessert glasses.
Nude Glass Savage Coupetini Glass 17 cl (6 pieces)
RCR Melodia Coupette Glass 16 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 86,90.
The right tools
For a Grasshopper, besides the glass, you use a shaker, a jigger for precise measuring and a fine-mesh strainer for double straining. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you’ll find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glassware set (our choice 01) + 3 bar tools together € 92,80.
What do you make a Grasshopper with?
For a Grasshopper, you need the right base. Well-known bottles include Berliner Luft. On every drink page, you can read the alcohol percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it works with and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
Blended with vanilla ice cream, it’s a dessert from American supper clubs; with a splash of branca menta, it’s an adult digestif. White crème de menthe with a mint leaf gives a subtler, colorless version. Chocolate shavings on top are never a bad idea. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
Ice-cold is the secret: put the liqueurs in the fridge too. For the winter version, blend it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and you officially have a dessert.
Good to know
Where the name Grasshopper comes from
The name is purely visual: the combination of green crème de menthe with white crème de cacao and cream produces a vivid grasshopper-green color. Philip Guichet of Tujague's restaurant in New Orleans created it around 1918 and reportedly came second with it in a cocktail competition in New York. There is no reference to mint or to a place, only to that color. If you use white crème de menthe, the green disappears completely and the name no longer really fits, although the flavor remains virtually the same.
Green or white crème de menthe
Green and white differ mainly in color, not flavor: both are mint liqueurs of around 20 to 25 percent. The green version gives the signature grasshopper color and is therefore the classic choice. White makes the cocktail cream-colored and more subtle-looking, which at a dinner table comes across less like a children's dessert. When buying, check the alcohol percentage, because there are also non-alcoholic mint syrups; these make the whole thing noticeably sweeter and thinner. Put the bottles in the refrigerator with the cream, because shaking everything ice-cold is half the battle here.
Without cream or plant-based
If you want it dairy-free, canned coconut cream works best: use 3 cl, stir it well, and shake hard for fifteen seconds. The coconut flavor is closer to crème de cacao than you might expect and is barely noticeable. Oat cream is the most neutral option but foams less, so add a barspoon of aquafaba for texture. Almond drink is too thin and makes the whole thing watery. You can also leave out the cream entirely: then you are drinking a Flying Grasshopper with vodka instead of cream, which is considerably stronger and much less sweet.
Difference from a Brandy Alexander
These two are siblings and follow exactly the same template: equal parts of three ingredients, about 3 cl each, shaken hard and served straight up. The Grasshopper uses green crème de menthe and white crème de cacao and tastes fresh and minty, like a liquid after-dinner mint. The Brandy Alexander replaces the mint with cognac and the white cacao with the dark variant, creating a warmer, more chocolatey and heavier finale. Nutmeg belongs with the Alexander, while grated chocolate or a mint leaf suits the Grasshopper.
Which cream do you use?
The heavy cream in a Grasshopper cocktail does not need to be whipped, but the fat content does matter. Unwhipped heavy cream contains around 35 percent fat and gives that thick, silky texture; coffee or cooking cream with approximately 20 percent makes the mixture thinner and lets the liqueurs come through more sharply. Use the cream straight from the refrigerator and do not shake for much longer than those fifteen seconds, because cream that spins around in an ice-cold shaker for too long starts to whip and leaves flakes behind in the strainer.
Shaking multiple glasses at once
The Grasshopper cocktail recipe scales up neatly, but your shaker does not. A 50 cl shaker can hold at most two servings with ice at once, so 6 cl crème de menthe, 6 cl crème de cacao and 6 cl heavy cream. If you are serving six, mix the liqueurs and cream in advance in a bottle and chill it; for each round, you only need to shake and strain. Meanwhile, pre-chill the coupes, because this cocktail is served without ice in the glass and therefore warms up quickly.
Frequently asked questions
What is in a Grasshopper?
Equal parts: 3 cl green crème de menthe, 3 cl white crème de cacao and 3 cl heavy cream, shaken vigorously for fifteen seconds and garnished with a mint leaf or grated dark chocolate. The bright green color comes entirely from the crème de menthe, not food coloring.
Why is the cocktail called Grasshopper?
Because of its grasshopper-green color. Philip Guichet of Tujague's restaurant in New Orleans created it around 1918 for a cocktail competition in New York, where it came second. In the 1950s and 1960s, it grew into America's after-dinner drink.
Can you make a Grasshopper without cream?
Yes, replace the cream with coconut cream or full-fat oat milk for a plant-based version, or blend it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream to make a dessert. Without anything creamy, the cocktail is both sharp and sweet, so something richer than regular milk is recommended.
Which glass do you serve a Grasshopper in?
In a coupe or coupette glass of 16 to 17 cl. Smaller is better here, because the Grasshopper is a digestif, not a session drink, and its pastel green color looks best against clear crystal. A set of coupette glasses also looks beautiful on a dessert buffet: see our coupette glasses.
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