With an orange-red hue reminiscent of a tropical sunset and beachy flavors like pineapple and peach, a sex on the beach recipe is an easy-breezy cocktail for soaring temperatures. This provocatively named drink was a classic in the 1980s and it’s still fun to serve and sip. The vodka cocktail is made with peach schnapps, orange, pineapple and cranberry juice, whose summery seaside appeal makes it an enduring cocktail.
Its former popularity might have waned, but the sex on the beach remains one of the easiest mixed drinks to put together. The sunset sipper offers a satisfying sweet-tart pairing for all things off the grill and anything seasoned with spice.
Why is it called sex on the beach?
Cocktail lore tells us Ted Pizio, a bartender at Confetti Bar in Florida, created this iconic cocktail. Back in the mid-’80s, peach schnapps had recently been introduced to the market. Ted took up the challenge to sell as much of the liqueur as possible, creating a cocktail that combined peach schnapps with vodka, orange, cranberry and pineapple juice.
As for the grown up name? Anticipating its popularity with spring breakers, Pizio christened it after the two reasons he believed tourists flocked to the area. Some cocktail historians note there are recipes of this very drink in cocktail books from the early 1980s, made by combining two other iconic drinks from the decade: the fuzzy navel and the Cape Codder.
Sex on the Beach Ingredients
- Peach schnapps: This peach-flavored liqueur adds a sweet, bright fruit flavor. Use peach puree or peach juice for a fresher, more modern take.
- Orange juice: Go freshly squeezed or reach for a carton of your favorite orange juice.
- Pineapple juice: Adding pineapple juice brings a vibrant, refreshing tropical twist.
- Vodka: No need for anything fancy here. Any good quality vodka brand works: You won’t really taste it over the fruit juice and schnapps, so no need to use top-shelf.
- Cranberry juice: The cranberry juice float gives this cocktail its sunset-esque look and provides a refreshing tartness to counterpoint the schnapps, orange juice and pineapple.
- Garnishes: Top your sex on the beach drink with a maraschino cherry and orange wedge for added color and vacation vibes.
Directions
Step 1: Build the cocktail
Fill a highball or Collins glass with ice. Pour in peach schnapps, orange juice, pineapple juice and vodka. Stir well to combine. Top with cranberry juice and garnish.
Sex on the Beach Variations
- Make it frozen: Blend the ingredients with 1 cup of crushed ice for an effortless slushy take on the ’80s cocktail classic.
- Add coconut: Boost the tropical flavors by adding coconut liqueur, coconut rum or coconut-flavored vodka to the recipe.
- Use melon liqueur: Swap the peach schnapps for a melon liqueur like Midori.
Can you make sex on the beach cocktails ahead of time?
Mix up a pitcher of sex on the beach up to three days in advance or up to one day if using fresh fruit juices. Avoid pre-batching drinks with ice so you don’t have to worry about diluting the cocktail.
Sex on the Beach Tips
What’s the best glass to serve a sex on the beach?
As a long drink, the sex on the beach is served in a Collins or highball glass. Other types of cocktail glasses you can use are hurricane glasses (ideal for leaning into the tropical appeal) and Mason jars.
What can you serve with a sex on the beach?
Thanks to its fun, fruity profile, the sex on the beach is excellent with all things seafood: Shrimp cocktail, grilled tilapia and South Seas mango halibut.
Crab recipes like crab cakes, crab dip and crab rangoons are fabulous washed down with a sex on the beach thanks to crab meat’s subtle natural sweetness. Chicken is stellar, too, especially recipes with zesty bold marinades like jerk chicken or five-spice chicken wings. For another non-seafood option, you can’t go wrong with pulled pork sliders.
