10 Best Cointreau Drinks

Here’s one of the very best Cointreau drinks, and possibly one of the best classic cocktails of all time. The Sidecar! What’s so great about the Sidecar? This drink is perfectly balanced between sweet and tart, with just the right edge from the boozy Cognac. It’s a complex, layered drink: warm, crisp, dry, rich, and full at the same time.

Variations: Vodka Sidecar, Bourbon Sidecar, Between the Sheets

Ingredients: Cognac, Cointreau, lemon juice

Arguably the most famous of all Cointreau drinks is the margarita! The classic way to make a margarita is defined on the International Bartender Association’s IBA official cocktails. It's got just three ingredients and a salt rim. Perfection!

Variations: Try all our Margarita Recipes (Mezcal, Strawberry, Jalapeño and more)

Ingredients: Tequila, Cointreau, lime juice

It’s got a brilliant pink color and tangy, refreshing flavor: yes, it’s a Cosmo! A Cosmopolitan cocktail, to be exact. This sour cocktail is irresistibly sweet tart and its beautiful color is reason in itself to make it. Here's a modern spin on it that's perfectly balanced and just sweet enough.

Ingredients: Vodka, 100% cranberry juice, lemon juice, Cointreau, simple syrup

Here’s a smooth, citrus forward classic Cointreau drink with a sophisticated vibe: the White Lady! This 1920’s style sour cocktail is clear and crisp, with a refreshing flavor and a frothy egg white foam topping. It’s super classy, perfect for a cocktail night or just sipping on the porch.

Ingredients: Gin, Cointreau, lemon juice, egg white

Here’s a drink that doesn't commonly have Cointreau: but it adds the perfect touch! How to make a perfect mimosa? Use Prosecco instead of champagne for a sweeter, nuanced flavor. Use it with a heavy hand, and add a dash of Cointreau. It’s tart, just sweet enough, and bubbly as all get out.

Ingredients: Orange juice, Prosecco, Cointreau

Here's a Cointreau drink with a clean flavor and sophisticated vibe: a lemon drop martini! This zingy vodka martini is perfectly balanced and refreshingly tart, served with a sugar rim and a lemon twist. It looks so festive that it’s great for celebrations and cocktail hour.

Ingredients: Vodka (or Citron vodka), Cointreau, lemon juice, simple syrup

Here's a signature Cointreau drink for your next gathering: a Pomegranate Martini! Crisp, sweet tart, fruity, and light: it’s much closer to a Cosmo than the classic martini. But instead of cranberry juice like the Cosmopolitan, it’s made with pomegranate juice! Serve it up in a martini glass and you’ve got a sophisticated cocktail that’s refreshing and easy to drink.

Ingredients: Vodka, Pomegranate juice, lemon juice, Cointreau, simple syrup

Want a fun spin on the margarita? Try a Cadillac Margarita! As the name implies, this is a sophisticated version of the classic Cointreau drink. Float Grand Marnier on top of your classic margarita and you’ve got the Cadillac. It has a nuanced flavor that will make everyone say, “Wow! What’s in this?” It’s a great way to step up your cocktail game with very little effort. 

Ingredients: Grand Marnier, Tequila, Cointreau, lime juice

The Mai Tai might sound like a fruity resort drink from the 1990’s, but it’s anything but! This drink is a classic cocktail from the 1940’s that’s been (cough) ruined by saccharine sweet versions intended for tourists. A real Mai Tai? is breathtakingly complex, featuring rum, orange liqueur, and fancy almond syrup. It’s just sweet enough, with nutty and vanilla notes against the sharp citrus. Float a little dark rum on top, and you get to the core of a Mai Tai: it’s sophisticated, nuanced, and extraordinarily special.

Ingredients: Aged rum, dark rum, Cointreau (or Grand Marnier), lime, orgeat syrup

Meet the Pegu Club cocktail! It’s a classic 1920’s drink invented at, as the name suggests, the Pegu Club. This boozy drink is sophisticated and refreshing, with a citrus and herbal finish. It’s surprisingly balanced, but not too sweet. Here’s how to make this intriguing classic…that we think deserves a revival.

Ingredients: Gin, Cointreau, lime juice, bitters

Here’s a zingy spin on a classic Cointreau cocktail that’s a solid drink in its own right: the vodka sidecar! The Sidecar is a classic sour cocktail made with brandy, and this spin swaps it out with…you guessed it, vodka! Sometimes trying to improve on a classic comes up a little short. But this vodka sidecar is absolutely worth making. It’s refreshingly tangy, with a little vodka zing on the back end.

Ingredients: Vodka, Cointreau, lemon juice