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How to Make a Cosmo Cocktail: Classic Cosmopolitan Recipe

Name: How to Make a Cosmo Cocktail: Classic Cosmopolitan Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 1 cocktail
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 ½ ounces citrus vodka; 1 ounce cranberry juice; ½ ounce fresh lime juice; ½ ounce Cointreau; ½ ounce simple syrup (optional); Lemon twist, lime wedge, or orange peel, for garnish

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Jun 21, 2025 • 1 min read

As drink orders go, if a Vodka Cranberry is strictly utilitarian, an expertly-made Cosmo—bitter and sweet in all the right ways—is the true queen of the cranberry juice cocktails. Sex and The City might have solidified the Cosmopolitan’s popularity, but, as with most classic cocktails, its origins are up for debate, with history in both Miami and New York City.

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How to Make a Cosmopolitan Cocktail

A Cosmopolitan cocktail includes vodka, an orange liqueur like triple sec or Cointreau, cranberry juice, and fresh lime juice. It’s similar to a Kamikaze—equal parts vodka, lime, and triple sec—but with a signature ruby-red cranberry hue. To double down on the citrus notes, many bartenders also use flavored vodka.

Classic Cosmopolitan Recipe

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makes

1 cocktail

prep time

5 min

total time

5 min

Ingredients

1 ½ ounces citrus vodka
1 ounce cranberry juice
½ ounce fresh lime juice
½ ounce Cointreau
½ ounce simple syrup (optional)
Lemon twist, lime wedge, or orange peel, for garnish

1
Combine vodka, cranberry juice, lime juice, and Contreau in a cocktail shaker over ice, and shake vigorously.
2
Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a lemon twist, lime wedge, or orange peel.

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