Food & Travel Experts Reveal 13 Must-Try Cocktails From Around The World

A tropical vacation makes any drink taste better (sorry, we don't make the rules). And in Aruba, there's one refreshing cocktail that perfectly captures the island's energy. "The Aruba Ariba is a nice and sweet tropical drink that’s dangerously smooth and easy to sip," says Maurice van der Linden, Food & Beverage Director of Amsterdam Manor Beach Resort Aruba.

"The recipe uses local products and flavors including local rum, vodka, banana liqueur, Cointreau, pineapple juice, orange juice and grenadine, and a splash of Coecoei, a local red liqueur," van der Linden says. "This island classic hits you fast and will leave you smiling and 'Happy' on the One Happy Island!"

You may associate New Orleans with Mardi Gras staples like the Hurricane, but experts overwhelmingly agree that the Sazerac deserves the title for the city's signature cocktail.

"It’s history in a glass,” says Emery Whalen, CEO and Owner of QED Hospitality. She notes that the drink—originally made with Cognac (“a nod to New Orleans’ French roots”) and later rye whiskey (“because the French cut off our supply when we declared our liberté"), includes Peychaud’s bitters, invented by a Creole apothecary right in the French Quarter.

"Add a sugar cube, a rinse of absinthe, which was banned and then gloriously resurrected, and a lemon twist, and you’re drinking a cocktail as complex and storied as the city that created it," she says.

Agave spirits have been a part of Mexican history as far back as 200 AD. And mezcal is one of the nation's most beloved, especially in the capital. "While traditionally sipped straight, Mexico City's bartenders began incorporating mezcal into margaritas as the capital embraced both its roots and modern mixology," says Kyle Taylor, Founder and Chef at He Cooks.

The smoky, tart, refreshing cocktail can be enjoyed in every part of the city. "You can sip one floating through the canals of Xochimilco on a weekend trajinera ride, order it at an old-school mezcalería in the historic city center like Bósforo, or enjoy a perfectly crafted version at a high-end restaurant in Polanco like Pujol," Taylor says.

If you ever find yourself in Barcelona, ordering a pitcher of sangria is a rite of passage. "Barcelona, and Catalonia at large, has a long and proud tradition of winemaking, dating back to Roman times," says Will Dasco, Director of Food & Beverage at The Ned NoMad. The combination of citrus and red wine captures the agricultural bounty of the region, and the addition of ice makes it a perfect drink to enjoy in the Mediterranean summer heat.

"In Barcelona, drinking is less about quantity and more about conversation, community, and enjoying the moment," Dasco says. Because of the slower pace of the city, sangria should be savored. "Meals and drinks can last hours," he adds. "Lean into it."

The title of New York's signature cocktail is fiercely debated (see below!), but the Manhattan is arguably the most ubiquitous choice (it is named after the city, after all). It's a beloved beverage not just in the Big Apple, but all over the world.

"The Manhattan was first mixed in the 1870s, right here in New York, and its core ingredients—rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, and bitters—speak to the city’s immigrant influence and classic sensibilities," says Dimitrios Michalopoulos, General Manager at Bemelmans Bar at The Carlyle, a Rosewood Hotel.

We couldn't stop at just one New York City cocktail. You may love ordering Bloody Marys at boozy brunch, but its origins date back to a swanky hotel bar in New York City. Fernand Petiot is believed to have created the Bloody Mary as head bartender at King Cole Bar at The St. Regis.

The popularity of the cocktail propelled the Bloody Mary to legendary status. However, the name was believed to be too vulgar for the hotel's clientele, so the OG destination now refers to the drink as The Red Snapper.

Italy has a long history of distillation across the country, which means each city has a beloved spirit that's produced in the area. Venice, for example, is the land of Select—a refreshing red aperitivo made with botanicals like rhubarb and juniper. Enjoying it in a spritz is a must-do in the historic port city. Alongside the classic additions of prosecco and soda water, what makes this spritz extra special is the olive garnish.

"The Select Spritz is typically enjoyed as a pre-dinner drink, especially during the early evening hours known as 'aperitivo time' in Venice," says Rudi Carraro, Global Brand Ambassador for Gruppo Montenegro. "It's often consumed in the lively squares of Venice, such as Campo Santa Margherita or along the canals, where locals and tourists alike gather to unwind and socialize after a long day."

Florence's signature cocktail, the Negroni, actually has an origin story that starts in Milan. The primary ingredient, Campari, was commonly served in its birthplace, Milan, with sweet vermouth—a popular cocktail known as the Milano-Torino. Then, in the 1860s, a derivative called the Americano was created with the addition of soda water. (The name comes from American tourists who wanted to water down Campari's bitter flavor.)

Cut to decades later in Florence. It's believed that aristocrat Count Camillo Negroni asked a bartender for a stronger version of the Americano. Once the soda water was swapped out for gin, the negroni was born. And whenever you sip the cocktail in Florence, you enjoy an iconic piece of Italian history.

Bartender Ngiam Tong Boon created the Singapore Sling at the Long Bar in the Raffles Hotel in 1915. He designed it specifically to look like a non-alcoholic beverage for women because public alcohol consumption wasn't socially appropriate at the time.

"The cocktail includes gin, cherry liqueur, pineapple juice, and herbal bitters to showcase how Singapore’s colonial past often meets its natural tropical landscape and nearby Southeast Asian flavors," says Sushant Yadav, Co-founder of Travelosei.

You can enjoy this refreshing signature cocktail at rooftop bars throughout the city-state. But Yadav says you should go straight to the source. "Drinking a Singapore Sling is most popular at the Long Bar, with guests often enjoying it as they peel and toss peanut shells all around the room."

There is no tropical cocktail more iconic than the piña colada. You can find it at nearly every beach club and resort in the Caribbean, but historians credit Puerto Rico's capital city as the drink's birthplace. The details are fiercely contested, but the prevailing theory is that Bartender Ramón "Monchito" Marrero first created the cocktail at The Caribe Hilton in 1954 as a welcome drink for hotel guests.

The piña colada was crowned as the official drink of Puerto Rico in the 1970s and remains a signature cocktail across San Juan.

You can't go to Peru without trying pisco, a high-proof brandy native to the nation as well as Chile. It's most notably used as the base of a pisco sour, along with lime juice and simple syrup. But the defining characteristic is the layer of egg white foam and the dash of bitters decorating the top.

Luxury travel advisor and founder of Atlas Adventures Whitney Haldeman describes the pisco sour as "light, zesty, creamy, with a whisper of bitterness on the finish. It’s both refreshing and velvety—like a citrus cloud with attitude."

You can, of course, also enjoy a pisco sour in Chile's capital, but there's another signature cocktail that's worth trying when visiting Santiago. The city's geographic location along the Ring of Fire means that earthquakes are commonplace, hence the Terremoto: a sweet, refreshing cocktail named in honor of the city's seismic activity.

"The Terremoto is made with pipeño (a local white wine), pineapple ice cream, and grenadine. Some variations include a splash of Fernet Branca, an Italian bitter, to balance the sweetness," says Eder Leon, restaurant and bar manager at Bonny Moon Beach Club.

When visiting America's capital, order the district's official cocktail: the Gin Rickey. "It has a well-documented history of being invented in the Capital City in 1883 at Shoomaker's Bar as the favorite drink of Colonel Joseph Rickey, consisting of whiskey, ice, seltzer water, and the juice of half a lime," says Nick Farrell, Spirits Director at Neighborhood Restaurant Group.

Over time, gin replaced whiskey as the base spirit of choice, and the Gin Rickey became a city staple. "Washington D.C.'s hot summers make this long, fizzy drink a very refreshing antidote to its balmy, humid weather," Farrell says.