This Blood Orange Cocktail made with blood oranges, gin, lemon juice, citrus bitters, Cointreau, and ice. It’s a sexy, fun, and tasty pink drink I call a Citrus Tango!
Blood Orange Cocktail
This is one of my favorite times of the year, not just because it’s the season of love, but because it’s also the season of blood oranges. Which ultimately means its blood orange cocktail season 😉
I love that they’re at their peak around Valentine’s Day, I know blood doesn’t really scream romance, but the color is gorgeous and the flavor is amazing. Plus they make for a pretty great cocktail.
One of my favorite things to do with Matt is mix cocktails. We’re always butting heads on what should go into them. I want something that both tastes good and looks pretty and Matt just wants the best cocktail he can make regardless of how it looks.
We went to the grocery store the other night and I told him that I needed to make a cocktail for you guys. I don’t even remember what idea he pitched but I told him it didn’t exactly fit my audience.
His response “It doesn’t need to fit your audience, it needs to fit the people trying to get with your audience.” Yup, such a man.
Anyways, we went with the best of both worlds. I told him we were going to use blood oranges because it would give that vibrant color and fruitiness I wanted and then he could add whatever else he wanted.
After several rounds of testing, this tasty little Citrus Tango was born. It’s a bright mix of gin, Cointreau, lemon juice and blood orange juice with a touch of grapefruit bitters. So there you have it, a drink that’s pretty and strong, a great date night drink I’d say.
So now that you have a drink in hand, you can plan the rest of your Valentine’s Day Date Night In menu, because let’s face it, no one wants to go out to dinner in the craziness on Saturday night.
You can also check out these 5-Ingredient Red Velvet Cupcakes and these 4-Ingredient Chocolate Mousse Cups for dessert and rent a romantic comedy!
More Delicious Cocktail Recipes!
Pin this Citrus Tango Cocktail for Later!
This recipe was originally published in February 2015 and was updated with new photos and further recipe testing in January 2018.
Blood Orange Cocktail
Ingredients
- 2 blood oranges
- 1/2 lemon
- 1 oz. gin
- 1/2 oz. orange liqueur
- 2 drops grapefruit bitters
- 1 lemon slice for garnish
- 1 blood orange slice for garnish
- crushed ice
Instructions
- Juice the two blood oranges and the half lemon and add to a cocktail shaker with gin, orange liqueur, and bitters and shake.
- Pour over a tall glass full of crushed ice.
- Top with a lemon and blood orange slice.
Chelsea @ Gal on a Mission says
February 9, 2015 at 9:15 amMmmmm! I am in love with the color from the blood oranges, Rebecca! Can’t wait to try it – we have almost everything here besides the blood oranges. Pinned. 🙂
Rebecca says
February 9, 2015 at 12:47 pmMe too, I could totally just stare at this drink and pretend I’m somewhere tropical!
Jesseca says
February 9, 2015 at 11:06 amYour photos are stunning! Makes me wish I had one in my hand right now.
Rebecca says
February 9, 2015 at 12:57 pmThank you, Jesseca! I had so much fun playing with darker tones in these photos! I hope you get a chance to make one for yourself soon!
Maggie @ The Love Nerds says
February 9, 2015 at 12:28 pmThis looks stunning! Seriously, it is too gorgeous NOT to make, which is why I fall into your camp on the cocktail debate. Yes, it should taste good. But I also want it to be pretty.
Amy | Club Narwhal says
February 9, 2015 at 8:46 pmI think blood oranges are the sexiest of all the citrus fruits 🙂 And this drink looks to die for!
Rebecca says
February 11, 2015 at 1:28 pmI agree, girl, I agree!
Angela says
February 9, 2015 at 9:45 pmThis drink sounds absolutely fabulous!!! The photos are gorgeous too!!!! Sharing and pinning this one!
Patricia @ Grab a Plate says
February 9, 2015 at 10:02 pmBeautiful cocktail! It’s full of some of my favorite ingredients, especially blood oranges! So pretty!
[email protected] easy as Apple Pie says
February 10, 2015 at 1:38 amBeautiful pictures! I will definitely try it
Atta Girl Amy says
February 10, 2015 at 9:43 pmYou’re going to mix me one of these, right, since i came up with the winning name? Although I really loved some of the ones you rejected! 🙂 Looks yummy. I kinda wish I had one right this minute!
Chelc | Inside the Fox Den says
February 17, 2015 at 9:08 pmYou had me at blood orange! The color is great and anything citrus-y is always a good idea!
Kyla @HouseOfHipsters says
February 19, 2015 at 1:12 pmBlood Oranges must be in season now because i seem to be hearing a lot about them lately. These look super good! Thank you for sharing on Found & Foraged!
Natalie says
February 20, 2015 at 10:32 amThis looks delicious 🙂 I love the pictures
Susan says
February 20, 2015 at 7:16 pmI confess I’ve never tried a blood orange (the use of the word “blood” in the name has put me off). I’ll have to give them and your citrus cocktail a try. Thanks for sharing at the This Is How We Roll Link Party on Organized 31.
Karren Haller says
February 21, 2015 at 7:39 pmThe drinks look refreshing. Thanks for linking on Friday Feature, I have pinned your post to our Friday Feature Board!!! Have a great weekend, Karren
Lindsay Eidahl says
February 23, 2015 at 11:54 amLooks so yummy and so pretty! Thank you for sharing on Show Me Saturday!
Cydnee says
February 23, 2015 at 3:43 pmI personally pinned this recipe. I love it! Thank you very much for joining in the celebration of #purebloglove, we enjoy having you each week. I hope to see you on Thursday at 8PM, EST through Sunday night. ~Cydnee
Christie says
February 25, 2015 at 10:49 amI enjoyed reading this post! Thanks for sharing at Wordless Wednesday. Don’t forget to stop by again this week!
Lorelai @ Life With Lorelai says
March 1, 2015 at 1:30 pmWhat a pretty cocktail…sound yummy too! Please come share your blog posts over at the Home Matters Linky Party! We’d love to have you for a visit. The Door is OPEN. http://lifewithlorelai.com/2015/02/26/home-matters-linky-party-26/ 🙂
~Lorelai
Life With Lorelai