cocktaildna

United States · 1987

Sex on the Beach

Also known as SOTB

A bright, fruity vodka highball that tastes like summer in a glass, mixing orange, peach, and cranberry into one very sweet drink.

peachcranberryorangesweetfruityvodkatropicalsummerhighballparty

%

ABV

Difficulty

Sex on the Beach

Overview

What this drink is like

The first sip hits you with sweet peach and sharp orange, followed by the tart bite of cranberry juice cutting through the sugar. It finishes wet and fruity, with the vodka warmth creeping in at the very end after the fruit flavors fade.

Who will like it

This is for drinkers who like sweet, fruit-forward cocktails and want something cold and easy to sip without tasting the alcohol.

When to drink

Drink this poolside or at a summer party when you want something icy and fun that goes down easy.

Ordering tip

Ask the bartender to go easy on the peach schnapps if you don't want it overly sweet, or request a splash of soda water to cut the sugar.

Ice: CubedTemp: ColdCost: $8–$12Glass: HighballBatch-friendlyHome bar friendly

Flavor

Taste profile

This drink is a sugar bomb in the best way, hitting your tongue with immediate peach and orange sweetness. The cranberry juice tries to hold the line with a little tartness, but the schnapps usually wins. It goes down easy and cold, barely tasting like alcohol at all. There is no depth or lingering complexity—just sweet fruit juice from start to finish.

Finish: The finish is short and wet, leaving a sticky peach-orange sweetness on your lips with a faint warmth from the vodka at the very end.

Primary tastes

sweetfruity

Secondary

sour

Aroma

peachorangesweet berry
  • Sweetnessvery sweet

    Peach schnapps and two fruit juices stack up to make this one of the sweender standard cocktails.

  • Sournessmildly tart

    The cranberry and orange juice bring a light tartness that tries to cut the sugar, but it stays mild.

  • Strengthlow alcohol

    A lot of juice and schnapps dilute the vodka down, so the alcohol stays in the background.

  • Refreshingvery refreshing

    Cold, icy, and packed with fruit juice, this drinks almost like a boozy smoothie on a hot day.

  • Complexitystraightforward

    What you see is what you get—fruit and vodka mixed together with no layered flavors to unpack.

Recipe

Make it at home

Shaken · Highball · equal parts on Vodka. null

Before you start

Pull out your cocktail shaker and a tall glass, and make sure you have plenty of ice ready for both. If you're using fresh oranges, cut a slice for the garnish before your hands get sticky.

Ingredients

  • VodkaBase Spirit30ml
  • Peach SchnappsLiqueur30ml
  • Orange JuiceJuiceFresh squeezed is best, but standard bottled works fine60ml
  • Cranberry JuiceJuiceUse 100% cranberry juice if you want it tart, or cranberry cocktail for a sweeter drink60ml

Garnish: Orange slice, Maraschino cherry

Tools

  • Cocktail shaker · Shaking

    To chill and mix the juices and spirits quickly with ice

    At home: A large mason jar with a tight lid

  • Jigger · Measuring

    To measure the spirits and juices accurately

    At home: A shot glass or measuring spoons

  • Hawthorne strainer · Straining

    To hold back the ice when pouring the drink into the glass

    At home: A slotted spoon or fine mesh sieve

  • Highball glass · Serving

    To serve the drink with fresh ice

    At home: Any tall glass tumbler

Ingredients and tools to make Sex on the Beach
Ingredients and tools

Steps

  1. 1

    Take your cocktail shaker and pour in 30ml of vodka and 30ml of peach schnapps using your jigger. The peach schnapps is thick and sweet, so measure it right at the bottom of the shaker.

    Step 1 — how to make Sex on the Beach

    !Free-pouring the schnapps usually leads to a drink that is far too sweet.

  2. 2

    Add 60ml of orange juice and 60ml of cranberry juice to the shaker. The cranberry will give the mix a pinkish-red tint once everything blends together.

    Step 2 — how to make Sex on the Beach

    !Using cranberry cocktail blend instead of real juice makes the drink cloyingly sweet.

  3. 3

    Fill the shaker to the top with ice cubes, then seal it tight. Shake it hard for about 10 seconds until the outside of the metal shaker feels freezing cold and frosty. That cold tells you the drink is fully mixed and chilled.

    ~10s

    Step 3 — how to make Sex on the Beach

    !Shaking too gently leaves the juices and spirits poorly mixed and the drink warm.

  4. 4

    Fill your highball glass with fresh ice cubes while you wait for the shaker to settle. You want the glass packed so the drink stays cold as you sip it.

    Step 4 — how to make Sex on the Beach

    !Using the melted ice from the shaker to fill the glass waters the drink down fast.

  5. 5

    Pop the top off the shaker and fit your Hawthorne strainer over the opening. Pour the drink through the strainer into your ice-filled highball glass until the liquid sits just below the rim.

    Step 5 — how to make Sex on the Beach

    !Letting ice shards slip into the serving glass dilutes the drink faster.

  6. 6

    Drop an orange slice and a maraschino cherry right on top of the ice. Serve it right away while the glass is still frosty.

    Step 6 — how to make Sex on the Beach

Serve

Serve it in a tall highball glass packed with ice, since this is a wet, fruity drink that warms up fast. The garnish goes right on top, and you want a straw for sipping.

Variations

Ingredient substitutions

Each row shows what you can swap in place of an original ingredient, and how the drink changes.

Swap options for Peach Schnapps

  • Peach SchnappsPeach Brandy
    Match
    Common availability

    Peach Schnapps → Peach Brandy: Adds a richer, deeper stone fruit flavor with less syrupy sweetness than schnapps.

Swap options for Vodka

  • VodkaGin
    Match
    Common availability

    Vodka → Gin: Brings herbal and pine notes that clash a bit with the sweet fruit but add more depth.

Swap options for Orange Juice

  • Orange JuicePineapple Juice
    Match
    Common availability

    Orange Juice → Pineapple Juice: Swaps the citrus brightness for a tropical, mellow sweetness that blends well with peach.

Related

Similar cocktails

Cousin drinks that share DNA with this one — each profile stands on its own.

Fuzzy Navel

Similar cocktail

Fuzzy Navel

The Fuzzy Navel drops the cranberry juice entirely, making it even sweeter and less tart.

Match

Both drinks taste like sweet peach and orange juice, but the cranberry in Sex on the Beach gives it a tart bite and a pinker color that the Fuzzy Navel misses entirely.

In common: Vodka base, peach-forward flavor, sweet and fruity profile

Ingredients

Both share

Vodka, Peach Schnapps, Orange Juice

Only in Sex on the Beach

Cranberry Juice

Sex on the Beach adds cranberry juice to the Fuzzy Navel's base of vodka, peach schnapps, and orange juice, bringing a tart, red edge that the Fuzzy Navel completely lacks.

Flavor

Shared flavors

Sweet peach and orange backbone, low alcohol presence, juice-forward and refreshing

How Fuzzy Navel differs

Tarter, drier finish, slightly more complex

View recipe & details →

Woo Woo

Similar cocktail

Woo Woo

The Woo Woo skips the orange juice, making it a simpler, slightly more spirit-forward drink.

Match

The Woo Woo is sharper and more tart since the cranberry has nothing to hide behind, while Sex on the Beach rounds out the edges with sweet orange juice.

In common: Vodka base, peach and cranberry flavor, bright pink color

Ingredients

Both share

Vodka, Peach Schnapps, Cranberry Juice

Only in Sex on the Beach

Orange Juice

Sex on the Beach layers orange juice on top of the Woo Woo's vodka, peach schnapps, and cranberry juice, adding citrus sweetness and bulk.

Flavor

Shared flavors

Sweet peach and tart cranberry mix, pink and icy presentation, easy drinking

How Woo Woo differs

More citrus, sweeter, less tart

View recipe & details →

Cape Codder

Similar cocktail

Cape Codder

The Cape Codder uses no peach schnapps, relying on lime instead for a much drier, sharper taste.

Match

A Cape Codder is a crisp, tart highball, while Sex on the Beach is a much sweeter, heavier drink that buries the cranberry tartness under peach and orange.

In common: Vodka base, cranberry tartness, highball serve

Ingredients

Both share

Vodka, Cranberry Juice

Only in Sex on the Beach

Peach Schnapps, Orange Juice

Only in Cape Codder

Lime Juice

Sex on the Beach replaces the Cape Codder's lime juice with peach schnapps and orange juice, shifting the drink from sharp and dry to sweet and fruity.

Flavor

Shared flavors

Cranberry forward, vodka base, icy and refreshing

How Cape Codder differs

Much sweeter, no citrus bite, heavier body

View recipe & details →

History

Origin

The drink is widely credited to a Florida bartender who created it in 1987 for a promotion distributing peach schnapps, though the exact creator and bar remain disputed. An earlier version existed in the 1980s using black raspberry liqueur instead of peach schnapps, but the peach and cranberry version became the standard.

Era
1980s
IBA
Contemporary Classics
Data version
IBA Contemporary Classics
Confidence

The IBA official recipe lists equal parts vodka and peach schnapps with equal parts orange and cranberry juices, which is the spec followed here.

Practical

Tips & pitfalls

What works at home and what to skip when making this drink.

Tips

Worth knowing before you pour

  • Use 100% cranberry juice instead of cocktail blend to keep the sugar in check.
  • Shake hard to get the juices ice-cold and properly mixed.
  • Squeeze fresh orange juice if you can—it makes a big difference in taste.

Avoid

Common mistakes

  • Don't use cheap peach schnapps, it tastes like syrup and ruins the drink.
  • Don't skip the shaking, stirring won't mix the thick juices properly.