- Mezcal
The Short Stormtrooper
A Star Wars cocktail inspired by Luke Skywalker that's built around a white dragon fruit syrup mixed with smoky mezcal, citrus, tropical bitters, and colored curaçao for a blue glow
Get geeky with these cocktail recipes inspired by your favorite fandoms.
Hello there! I’m Kendall, the craft cocktail connoisseur and geeky drinks enthusiast behind Novel Nightcaps.
After several years of taste-testing my way through my library of cocktail books—exploring everything from timeless classics to modern riffs and seasonal creations—I found my niche in geeky drinks: the ones inspired by fandoms, literature, pop culture, and fantasy that invite a bit of magic into the glass. Now, whether I’m dreaming up a new concoction based on an author’s fictional world or unearthing a past bartender’s oddball experiment, my favorite part of bartending is diving into ingredient pairings with unique origin stories that make them fun to revisit again and again.
Here within my recipe archive, you’ll find hundreds of cocktails I’ve tried (and some originals I’ve developed myself), complete with histories, techniques, and tasting notes—all written for fellow imbibers who appreciate well-crafted drinks and the story behind them too.
Cheers,
If geeky drinks aren’t your thing, check out a few of the highest-rated vintage, modern, and seasonal cocktail recipes I’ve tried.
A Halloween cocktail made with red wine, cranberry grape juice, raspberry liqueur, brandy, blackberry, red grape, and black plum
A tiki cocktail made with dark rum, grapefruit juice, lime juice, cinnamon syrup, passion fruit syrup, aromatic bitters, lime, mint, and cherry
A Valentine’s Day cocktail made with brandy, elderflower liqueur, lemon juice, cinnamon syrup, balsamic vinegar, aromatic bitters, and strawberry
A modern cocktail made with bourbon, simple syrup, lemon, mint, cherry bitters, mint, and cherry
A tiki cocktail made with gin, honey syrup, lemon juice, cold-brew coffee concentrate, ginger syrup, and lemon
A modern cocktail made with gin, lemon juice, Amaro Montenegro, grapefruit oleo-saccharum, egg white, aromatic bitters, and grapefruit
Cool off with these refreshing cocktail recipes perfect for summertime.
Learn how to make homemade simple syrups, shrubs, and spreads to use in cocktails.
