Romantic Cocktails for Valentine’s Day

Gaze at your loved one over mouth watering and picture-perfect drinks. Whether you’re a cocktail drinker, or you prefer to stick to mocktails, there are plenty of options out there, and who better to sample them with than your Valentine’s Day date?

Make a date night out of it – turn your home into a cocktail bar and try your hands at creating cocktails, ranking each of your favorites and noting the recipes down for future.

We’ve put together a list of cocktail and mocktail recipes, whether you want to take a look at the ingredients to judge whether you should order them in future, or you’re looking to get hands on and make your own.

Celebrate Valentine’s Day at Swingers

Before you get started with the cocktails, check out how we’re turning up the heat at Swingers this Valentine’s Day. Whether your relationship is new or old, “putt” your relationship to the test – you’ll receive a Valentine’s date kit when you book our Valentine’s Set. Within the kit, you’ll find challenges and date questions that’ll help you discover how well you know each other.

Book NoMad

Book Dupont Circle

Explore your relationship and test your connection, as well as amp up the competitiveness as you make your way around the course. Finish with delicious street food and expertly crafted cocktails. 

Cocktails

Dreamboat

This soft, dreamy fruity cocktail will make you feel like you’re floating down the tunnel of love.

Combine a shot of Empirical Symphony Six with a shot of Nonino L’Aperitivo. Mix in some strawberry syrup, cream of coconut and a dash of lemon. Top up with soda water and garnish with a lychee. 

Available at Swingers NoMad, you can try this one for yourselves during your Valentine’s date night.

Golden Hour 

As delectable as the light during a sunset, the Golden Hour cocktail is certainly one to try to light up your Valentine’s date.

Combine a shot of Espolon Reposado Tequila and a shot of Giffard Creme de Peche with simple syrup. Splash in some orange bitters and angostura bitters. Garnish with a lemon.

Enjoy Golden Hour as the sun sets – also available at Swingers NoMad and Swingers Dupont Circle.

Peach and Rose Fizz

A light and fruity take on the Bellini, this cocktail is one for the first time cocktail makers.

Simply combine fresh peach juice with prosecco and rosewater – be sparing with the rosewater, it can be quite strong!

Serve in champagne flutes for a glamorous finish.

Marzipan Old Fashioned

A comforting twist on the classic Old Fashioned, the Marzipan Old Fashioned tastes like a hug in a glass.

Mix an ounce of Amaretto, 1 teaspoon of sugar syrup, 1-2 drops of almond essence, and a dash of bitters in a jug. Add ice and continue to mix until the liquid has turned cold. Then add an ounce of brandy and mix until combined. Strain into a glass and serve with a twist of orange peel.

Rosé Sangria

Summer might be a while off, but you can turn up the heat with this Spanish Sangria-inspired recipe.

Remove the pitts from 3 peaches, and finely slice, alongside a cup of strawberries. Add to a jug and pour in a bottle of Spanish rosé. To this, add the juice of an orange, a table of golden caster sugar, and 1 ½ ounces orange liqueur. Chill in the fridge until chilled, and when ready to serve, top up with sparkling water and add a sprig of mint. Give it a stir before pouring.

Bitter Hearts Know Better

Fans of the classic Gimlet will enjoy this Valentine’s spin on the well-known cocktail.

Starting off as a classic Gimlet, combine gin, lime juice, and simple syrup. To make it a Bitter Hearts Know Better, substitute regular gin for hibiscus infused gin and add a dash of gentian amaro. This adds a light bitterness (hence the name), and a romantic pink color.

If you aren’t a fan of sweet cocktails, this recipe is the one for you. After all, bitter hearts know better (than sweet ones!)

Mezcal Last Word

A pre-prohibition classic, the Mezcal Last Word is a smoky, earthy, sweet cocktail that captures the romance of years gone by. The recipe was long forgotten until 2003, when it was picked up by a bartender who discovered the recipe in a cocktail recipe book from 1952.

Combine ¾ ounce mezcal with ¾ ounce green chartreuse and ¾ ounce maraschino liqueur in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with a lime.

Gin drinkers can swap out the Mezcal for a different flavor profile.

Opposites Attract

Impressive looking, this cocktail is surprisingly easy to make – the best combination for impressing a date. Orange and almond – an unlikely pair, but there’s a reason why opposites attract – it’s because they’re delicious!

Simply combine 3 ounces Fino Sherry with 1 ounce Cointreau and three orange slices in a mixing glass. Shake and strain twice before serving over ice. Garnish with a raspberry, strawberry, and mint leaf for the ultimate professional finish. 

The Licien Gaudin

An elegant French cocktail, this recipe is a vintage favorite whose essence is somewhere between a Martini and Negroni in flavor. 

Combine 1 ounce London dry-style gin, 1/2 ounce Dolin dry vermouth, 1/2 ounce Cointreau and 1/2 ounce Campari. Add ice and stir for 30 seconds before straining into a coupe.

Tom and Ginger

Fans of the savory cocktail, listen up! Mac n Cheese, Romeo and Juliet, you and your Valentine, Tom And Ginger – the greatest duos of all time! Similar to a Bloody Mary, this cocktail is like a meal in a glass.

Combine tomato juice with blitzed chili (or hot sauce) with 2 ounces of vodka. Add ¼ ounce vermouth, 1 teaspoon of ginger liqueur, ¼ ounce fresh lime juice and 2 dashes of bitters. Pour over ice, shake and strain into a glass.

Mocktails

Delicious drinks aren’t just reserved for those who drink alcohol. Mocktails are a wonderful creation, allowing those looking to keep their drinking alcohol-free to still enjoy the rich flavors, bright colors and fun that cocktails bring.

The Perfect Match

A light and herby mocktail, The Perfect Match is a great mocktail to make on Valentine’s Day date night.

Combine Seedlip Garden with hibiscus syrup and cinnamon syrup. Add blood orange puree, and top up with soda water. Garnish with a lemon.

Available at Swingers NoMad and Swingers Dupont Circle, gaze at your date over a glass of New Romantic.

Italian Cream Soda

Capture the feeling of nostalgia in a glass with this mocktail. A simple one to make, with a flavor payoff that’ll have you drinking it by the pitcher.

Mix 4 ounces of the Italian flavored syrup of your choice (vanilla, orange, cherry, hazelnut, etc.) with 4 ounces of half-and-half. Top up the glass with soda water and finish with a squirt of whipped cream.

Emerald Coin
For a mocktail as fresh as new love, the Emerald coin is the one for you.

Combine Seedlip Grove with honeydew juice. Finely chop a handful of lemongrass and add to the liquid alongside ice. Squeeze in half a lime and shake. Strain into a highball glass and add a stick of celery for garnish.