Sex on
the Beach

The composition is 4 cl vodka, 2 cl peach liqueur, 4 cl orange juice and 4 cl cranberry juice: two parts spirits to four parts juice. With ice, expect around 14 cl in the glass, containing just under 2 cl of pure alcohol. That works out to about 12 percent, comparable to a full-bodied glass of wine, while all that fruit makes it taste much more innocent. Want it lighter? Keep the vodka at 3 cl and add an extra centiliter of orange juice; the color gradient will still work perfectly.

There is surprisingly much left without vodka and peach liqueur, because the character mainly comes from the fruit. Replace the 4 cl vodka and 2 cl peach liqueur with 6 cl peach nectar or 5 cl peach syrup with a splash of water, and keep the 4 cl orange juice and 4 cl cranberry juice exactly as they are. The construction does not change: first ice, then the peach and orange, and the cranberry juice last down the side. Serve it in the same tall glass, because a mocktail in a children's cup is half-hearted.

Peach liqueur varies considerably in sweetness. Well-known bottles such as Peachtree and Archers contain around 15 to 20 percent alcohol and are both distinctly sweet; a peach brandy or a liqueur made with real peach purée gives a fuller, less candy-sweet result. The vodka does not need to be expensive: in a cocktail with two types of juice, you can barely taste the difference between a mid-range and a premium bottle. Do avoid flavored vodka, though, as it competes with the peach instead of supporting it.

At a party, making each glass individually wastes your time. Allow 4 cl vodka, 2 cl peach liqueur and 4 cl orange juice per person; for eight guests, that means 32 cl vodka, 16 cl peach liqueur and 32 cl orange juice in a one-and-a-half-liter pitcher. Chill the mixture for at least two hours and leave out the cranberry juice. Only pour it over ice when serving, then pour 4 cl cranberry juice down the side of each glass, otherwise the color gradient will become a flat pink mass after ten minutes.

What is in Sex on the Beach? Four ingredients plus a garnish: 4 cl of vodka, 2 cl of peach liqueur, 4 cl of orange juice and 4 cl of cranberry juice, finished with orange and a cherry. When shopping, pay particular attention to the cranberry juice, because alongside pure juice there is also cranberry nectar with added sugar; this makes the drink even sweeter, while the peach liqueur itself already adds plenty of sweetness. With pure juice, the Sex on the Beach cocktail stays balanced and you also get a deeper red color at the bottom of the glass.

When following a Sex on the Beach cocktail recipe, people often focus only on the centiliters and forget the ice. Fill the glass to the top with large cubes: they melt more slowly than crushed ice and therefore dilute the drink less, while a half-filled glass quickly becomes watery. Also chill the orange juice and cranberry juice well in advance, so the ice does not have to cool all your juice first. A Sex on the Beach cocktail served ice-cold also retains its color gradient for longer.