Purple Rain Cocktail
The Purple Rain cocktail is a sweet and tart drink made with vodka, blue curaçao, cranberry juice, pineapple juice, grenadine, and lime juice. It is named after the 1984 song by Prince, and the combination of blue curaçao and grenadine achieves its signature purple color.
The Purple Rain cocktail was created in the early 1980s by a bartender in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The cocktail quickly became popular and is now one of the most well-known Prince-inspired cocktails. It is often served at Prince tribute nights and events and a popular choice for Halloween parties.
The cocktail is typically served in a tall glass with ice, and the garnish can be a lime wedge, lime wheel, lemon wedge, or a cherry. But I chose not to garnish it because of how pretty the cocktail is.
This purple rain cocktail is so delicious and easy to make! Of course, a lot of people posted a Purple Rain cocktail as soon as Prince died, but I wanted to wait because I can be contrary like that.
Ask Christopher. He could tell you.
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Helpful
Tips
- Wash your citrus before juicing them or adding to the cocktail as garnish. You can use some unscented, natural hand soap and rub the skin with it before rinsing it off under cold water, or you can use this cloth. It has a coarse side and a smooth side. Hold the citrus under cold water, rub the skin of the fruit with the coarse side, and then rinse again.
- There are different blue Curacao brands, my favorites are the Arrow brand that I use here, or De Kuyper.
- There are many different recipes for the purple rain. This is how I’ve always made it but some recipes call for lemonade or lemon lime soda but I think it adds flavors that I don’t like so I stick with the way I’ve always made this mixed drink with fresh lime juice and pineapple juice.
- You can either salt the rim or sugar the rim of the glasses but I don’t believe this cocktail benefits from a salt/sugar rimmed glass.
How to make the purple rain cocktail
Pre-step
Get your cocktail shaker and fill it halfway with ice. Get a measuring glass and glassware.
After measuring out the ingredients, pour them into the shaker.
This recipe is for one cocktail, I have included two variations in the recipe card note section.
Step one
Gather the ingredients – vodka, blue Curacao liqueur, cranberry juice, pineapple juice, and lime.
Step two
Measure 2 ounces vodka. (A)
Step three
Measure 1 ounce blue Curacao. (B)
Step four
Measure 1-ounce cranberry juice. (C)
The color of the cocktail is now becoming more purple.
Step five
Measure 1 ounce pineapple juice. (D)
Step six
Measure 3/4 ounce grenadine. (E)
Step seven
Measure 1/2 ounce lime juice. (F)
Step eight
Place the lid on the shaker and shake vigorously for 30 seconds.
Step nine
Add extra ice cubes to the glass and pour the contents into a Tom Collins glass. See the recipe card below for two variations of this recipe.
I’ve pictured the three different ways I’ve mixed the Purple Rain. The front cocktail in the tall glass is the main recipe below.
Look at the deep purple color. YUM!! Notice that by the ice cubes, the cocktail looks almost teal, but below the cubes, it’s a lovely deep purple.
For a deeper purple color pictured in the double old fashioned glass below, use a full ounce of grenadine, as I call for in the two variations below.
This third variation, pictured in the martini glass, looks almost black. That’s because I left out the lime juice. I wanted to see if there was a taste difference. There is, but it’s so slight, you probably won’t miss it.
Which one of these purple rain cocktail variations do I prefer? I can’t play favorites! They are my “babies”!
Other popular blue Curacao recipes
I hope you enjoyed this purple rain cocktail recipe. I enjoyed drinking it! 🙂
And as always, may all your dishes/drinks be delish!
If you’ve tried this or any other recipe on the blog, I’d love the hear what you thought about it in the comments below. I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more of my delicious food and delightful cocktails!
Purple Rain Cocktail
Ingredients
- 2 ounces vodka
- 1 ounce blue curacao
- 1 ounce cranberry juice
- 1 ounce pineapple juice
- 3/4 ounce grenadine
- 1/2 ounce lime juice 1/2 lime
Instructions
- Fill your shaker 1/2 way with ice.
- Add the vodka, Blue Curacao, cranberry juice, pineapple juice, grenadine and lime juice.2 ounces vodka, 1 ounce blue curacao, 1 ounce cranberry juice, 1 ounce pineapple juice, 3/4 ounce grenadine, 1/2 ounce lime juice
- Place the lid on the shaker and vigorously shake for 20 seconds.
- Pour into a tall glass, I used a collins glass.
- Sip
- Smile
- Enjoy
Notes
Helpful tips
- Wash your citrus before juicing them or adding to the cocktail as garnish. You can use some unscented, natural hand soap and rub the skin with it before rinsing it off under cold water, or you can use this cloth. It has a coarse side and a smooth side. Hold the citrus under cold water, rub the skin of the fruit with the coarse side, and then rinse again.
- There are different blue Curacao brands, my favorites are the Arrow brand that I use here, or De Kuyper.
- There are many different recipes for the purple rain. This is how I’ve always made it but some recipes call for lemonade or lemon lime soda but I think it adds flavors that I don’t like so I stick with the way I’ve always made this mixed drink with fresh lime juice and pineapple juice.
- You can either salt the rim or sugar the rim of the glasses but I don’t believe this cocktail benefits from a salt/sugar rimmed glass.
2 ounces vodka
1 ounce blue curacao
1 ounce cranberry juice
1 ounce pineapple juice
1 ounce grenadine
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice Variation #2 – martini glass
2 ounces vodka
1 ounce blue curacao
1 ounce cranberry juice
1 ounce pineapple juice
1 ounce grenadine
Nutrition
*This recipe was originally published June 3, 2016. All process shots are from the original post.
From lighting up stages with her BA in theater to food journalist, Elaine Benoit's journey is a testament to passion's transformative power. As the CEO of Dishes Delish, she offers a blend of healthy, comforting recipes and exquisitely crafted cocktails. Beyond the kitchen, Elaine voiced her culinary adventures on her podcast, "Dishing," and co-owns Food Blogger Help, extending her expertise to guide budding food bloggers to success. Whether it's for a heartwarming dish or insights into food blogging, Elaine's diverse experiences make her a beacon in the culinary digital landscape.
My friend used to love Prince! Fun cocktail!
Thanks Joyce 🙂
what a great cocktail! the colour is beautiful love it!
Thanks Georgie! And it’s really tasty!
What a beautiful cocktail and it uses absolutely all of my favorites!
Thanks Ginny! I appreciate your comment!
Love the color and I bet it tastes delicious too. Also gorgeous photos of the drinks!
Thank you Kristi! 🙂
Oh, purple cocktail looks mysterious! I love your instructions 5-9, haha! Cheers!
Doesn’t it Alina? And hehe. Thanks! Cheers!
Ooooh I love this!! The colour is mesmerising! I love that you made this for your sister, it’s always hard losing someone and I don’t know… for me it doesn’t seem to matter how much time passes, I still find it incredibly difficult. I mean it’s easier to get through the day to day, but I rarely go long without thinking of someone I’ve lost and it’s still painful if I give it any kind of thought. I do enjoy making and doing things that I know they would have loved though, it makes me feel a little closer to them 🙂
Thanks so much Annie! And thanks for relaying your experience. It’s nice to see that I’m not alone! 🙂
What a fun cocktail! And the photos are gorgeous. Well done. (Now, how about a Singing in the Purple Rain cocktail?)
Hehe. Wheels are turning in the head!
I love all the flavors in this cocktail and I think this one again will go on top of my favorite cocktails of yours, cheers! So so sad for your sister Lainey, she was so young…
Thanks Patty! I appreciate it!
Great drink. I work at an Elks Lodge this was something very different for everyone. They have to get out the box this drink did it. Thank you for the recipe.
How fun, Denise! I’m glad you/they liked it. It was one of my sister’s favorites!
This looks delicious! I’m searching for a purple signature drink for my 50th birthday party and this fits the bill. Is there any way to make this in batches to be self-served by my guests?
I’ve never made it in a big batch, but I bet it could be done. I would perhaps not put a full egg whiter per drink though, try 1 for every 2 cocktails. So if you are making enough for 10 people, just use 5 whites as it’s going to sit for a bit. Hope that makes sense.