What’s special about this featured drink? It’s the perfect blend of coconut vodka infused with fresh pineapple, shaken into a rich blue foam and sure to make a splash with your friends! Says bartender Morgan Schnader, “The most fun part is the unique garnish of a floating pineapple ‘beach’ complete with umbrella and a surprise, with a bite lurking in the blue ocean cocktail below.”
For what occasion would you recommend this cocktail? It’s definitely great for an outdoor party, when having friends over on your patio, or as a drink to enjoy by the pool.
Life's a Beach
Ingredients
- Two shots of pineapple-infused coconut vodka (see how to infuse in instructions)
- Equal parts pineapple juice, splash of blue curacao, splash of sour mix (store bought would be fine, or buy homemade sour mix at Coastal Grille)
- Splash of Sprite
- 1 pineapple
- Drink umbrellas
- Gummy sharks
Tools Needed
- Shaker (preferably metal)
- Strainer
- Martini glasses
- Preset garnishes
Instructions
First, make your pineapple-infused coconut vodka. Store bought coconut vodka is fine if you prefer. Take your pineapple, cut the top and bottom off, skin the sides, use about three quarters of the pineapple roughly chopped in a container (reserve remaining pineapple for garnish). Submerge pineapple in coconut vodka. Let it sit at room temperature overnight, or for up to seven days. Squeeze out pineapple into coconut vodka completely. Discard pulp and strain into pitcher or bottle.
Preset the garnishes by taking the remaining pineapple and slicing into quarter-inch-thick rings. Cut each ring in half on a bias to create half-moon size “beaches” that will take up the top half of the martini glass. Stab the “beach” with an open cocktail umbrella piercing through. Just on the underside of the pineapple “beach,” pierce one gummy shark. Set aside.
Shake all drink ingredients in your shaker (except Sprite) with a little bit of ice. Strain into martini glasses, top with splash of Sprite, and float your “beach” garnish in half of the glass, letting the ocean foam splash against the shore.
Sip, snack and enjoy!
Have a Drink with Morgan Schnader
Morgan Schnader bartends at Coastal Grille in Wyomissing and has been with the company since 2012. Her favorite thing about bartending there is being able to craft not only ordinary cocktails such as cosmopolitans, Manhattans and martinis, but also creating drinks for the vast specialty cocktail menu. Some of her favorites are the featured Life’s a Beach, as well as the Coastal Baybreeze and Such a Pain Killer. When Morgan isn’t behind the bar at Coastal Grille, you can find her with her three Pit bulls: Riley, Lola and Ellie. She is a recent graduate of the Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences, earning a degree as a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer. Regarding her time at Coastal Grille, Morgan says, “Coming to work sometimes doesn’t really feel like coming to work. It feels like home. There are so many great regulars and coworkers who have become like family that it makes it enjoyable every day.”
Pair it with…
the Coastal Grille’s Coconut Shrimp appetizer or any of the fresh fish offerings topped with mango salsa.
