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 tiki cocktail made with dark rum, grapefruit juice, lime juice, cinnamon syrup, passion fruit syrup, aromatic bitters, lime, mint, and cherry
A vintage cocktail made with white rum, grapefruit juice, lime juice, cherry liqueur, and lime
A tiki cocktail made with pineapple juice, aromatic bitters, cream of coconut, lime juice, dark rum, orange, and nutmeg
A modern cocktail made with mezcal, ginger wort, lime juice, passion fruit purée, agave syrup, cucumber, candied ginger, and Tajín
A modern cocktail made with oatmeal stout beer, bourbon, simple syrup, black walnut bitters, and orange
A modern cocktail made with gin, blood orange juice, triple sec, lemon juice, and blood orange
Cool off with these refreshing cocktail recipes perfect for summertime.
Learn how to make homemade simple syrups, shrubs, and spreads to use in cocktails.
