The Pink Cocktail That Defined Late-’90s Cool

The pale, blush-colored Cosmopolitan is a simple sour cocktail composed of lemon-flavored vodka, orange liqueur, cranberry juice, and fresh lime juice. The drink reached iconic status when it debuted in 1999 during the second episode of season 2 of HBO’s Sex and the City. From that point forward, the drink became a frequent order on the show, so much so that it became part of its characters’ identities. The TV show, which ran from 1998 to 2004, is widely credited with helping to popularize the cocktail at the time.

There are a few debated stories around the Cosmo’s origin. According to some accounts, a loose framework of the cocktail had been circulating since the mid-1980s. While working at Miami’s The Strand Restaurant in South Beach, bartender Cheryl Cook created a drink — essentially a riff on the Kamikaze cocktail, popular at the time — made with vodka, triple sec, citrus, and “just enough cranberry to make it oh so pretty in pink.” It was named after Cosmopolitan magazine.

Heading into the ’90s, the ‘Tini craze was in full swing, flavored vodkas were the rage, and giant, V-shaped Martini glasses were a sign of cocktail elegance. It’s not surprising that several variations of the same cocktail popped up across the country around the same time. 

In 1988, while at The Odeon in New York City, bartender Toby Cecchini reformulated a drink that had been kicking around San Francisco gay bars for decades prior. The cocktail originally included vodka, Rose’s Lime Juice Cordial, and grenadine. Cecchini swapped in lemon-flavored Citron vodka, a new expression from Absolut, added a splash of cranberry for color, triple sec for sweetness, and freshly squeezed lime juice, transforming the drink into the Cosmo we are most familiar with today. 

Meanwhile, in Midtown’s Rainbow Room, legendary bartender Dale DeGroff was shaking up his own version of the Cosmo, adding his signature flamed orange peel garnish, and solidifying its place in the modern cocktail landscape.

Why the Cosmopolitan works

Like the Margarita and Gimlet, the Cosmo follows a classic sour formula, roughly balancing two parts base spirit, with one part sweet, and one part sour. 

Citron vodka provides a bright and layered foundation that supports the tangy fruit flavors in the drink. Cointreau, a brand of orange-flavored triple sec liqueur made in France, supplies all of the sweetness in the cocktail. It adds complex bitter orange peel notes and a touch of spice. A generous 3/4 ounce of the liqueur is balanced with an equal portion of freshly squeezed lime juice.

This recipe calls for a mere 1/2 ounce of cranberry juice — less than some other variations — for just the right amount of sweet and tart, resulting in its signature soft pink hue.