How to Make a Grasshopper Drink: Four Fun Varieties

Published July 25, 2022
grasshopper cocktail

A bright green cocktail, let alone a creamy one, is cause for both pause and interest. You may think of this cocktail as being a has-been, something best left in the 1950s, but you'll quickly change your attitude after that first creamy, minty sip. The grasshopper is a luscious peppermint and chocolate candy in a glass. Isn't it time you learned how to make a grasshopper drink? Any of these recipes is the perfect place to start.

How to Make a Grasshopper Drink

Born in 1919, the classic grasshopper laid in wait until the 1950s, when drinkers rediscovered the creamy mint chocolate classic. It was an instant cult favorite. The ingredients in a grasshopper drink may look like something from an ancient cookbook, but they're worth keeping on hand.

grasshopper cocktail with chocolate shavings

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce green crème de menthe
  • 1 ounce white crème de cacao
  • 1½ ounces heavy cream
  • Ice
  • Finely grated chocolate for garnish

Instructions

  1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
  2. In a cocktail shaker, add ice, crème de menthe, white crème de cacao, and heavy cream.
  3. Shake to chill.
  4. Strain into chilled glass.
  5. Garnish with grated chocolate.

Tujague's Grasshopper

It may be surprising, but New Orleans is the home of the grasshopper. Sure, a creamy cocktail may seem an unusual drink born from such a warm climate, but it was an instant favorite.

Tujague Grasshopper cocktail

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce white crème de cacao
  • ½ ounce brown crème de cacao
  • ½ ounce green crème de menthe
  • ¼ ounce clear crème de menthe
  • ½ ounce heavy whipping cream
  • Ice
  • ⅛ ounce brandy float

Instructions

  1. Chill a Champagne flute.
  2. In a cocktail shaker, add ice, both crème de cacao, both crème de menthe, and heavy whipping cream.
  3. Shake vigorously to chill.
  4. Strain into chilled glass.
  5. Top off with brandy float.

Irish Grasshopper

Give your grasshopper a bit of a bite by adding Irish cream to the mix. Make it even boozier by topping off with a splash of bourbon or vodka like they do in the original recipe.

Irish Grasshopper

Ingredients

  • 1½ ounces Irish cream
  • 1 ounce green crème de menthe
  • ¾ ounce white crème de cacao
  • Ice
  • Whipped cream and chocolate shavings for garnish

Instructions

  1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
  2. In a cocktail shaker, add ice, Irish cream, green crème de menthe, and white crème de cacao.
  3. Shake to chill.
  4. Strain into chilled glass.
  5. Garnish with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

Ice Cream Frozen Grasshopper

Play up the cooling mint flavors you find in a traditional grasshopper martini and dive head first into how easy it is to make grasshopper into an ice cream drink.

Ice Cream Grasshopper cocktail

Ingredients

  • 1½ ounce green crème de menthe
  • ¾ ounce white crème de cacao
  • 1-2 scoops ice cream - vanilla or mint chocolate chip
  • Ice
  • Whipped cream and mint sprig for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a blender, add ice cream, green crème de menthe, and white crème de cacao.
  2. Blend until smooth or desired consistency.
  3. Pour into milkshake or cocktail glass.
  4. Garnish with whipped cream and mint sprig.

Learn How to Make a Grasshopper Cocktail

Before the adult shamrock shake or even a mint candy martini, the world had the grasshopper cocktail. It may have lived in the shadows for several decades before rising to stardom and once more falling off the radar before the modern cocktail renaissance. It's a classic cocktail, and even IBA acknowledged, that's sure to become a new favorite dessert martini or even as a boozy shake!

How to Make a Grasshopper Drink: Four Fun Varieties