The Grasshopper cocktail recipe

If you’re someone who loves an after-dinner mint, then you’re going to froth the Grasshopper cocktail. Made from green creme de menthe, white creme de cacao and cream, the Grasshopper is slightly sweet, easy to drink and pours a soft pastel green – perfect as an after-dinner treat if you ask us. 

Like many cocktails, it’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment this drink was first served up, but here is a running history of what we know. The first documented iteration of the Grasshopper was an equal-parts mix of creme de cacao and green creme de menthe invented by Harry O’Brien, a bartender from the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. We know this as it was mentioned in William ‘Cocktail Bill’ Boothby’s famous 1908 book World’s Drinks and How to Mix Them. About 10 years later, at the start of prohibition, Philibert Guichet, owner of the famous Tujague’s in New Orleans, won the prestigious New York cocktail competition with his take on the Grasshopper. Much like the original – but with the addition of cream – Philibert’s winning drink remains the popular recipe we know and love today. 

There have been a few alterations to the recipe over the years, particularly in the ’70s and ’80s when the Grasshopper had a bit of a renaissance. The creamy, minty, chocolatey infusion that is the Grasshopper is rather low in alcohol (or what we like to call a ‘quiet’ drink), so the main change was the addition of vodka to give it a higher ABV, turning the Grasshopper into the Flying Grasshopper cocktail. 

Looking to make a Grasshopper yourself? Before you start banging the pots and pans around (so to speak) have a squiz at our top tips for making a good one below.

On paper, the Grasshopper is a super-easy cocktail to make. It’s basically just three ingredients slammed together in a cocktail tin and shaken. Technically, that’s true, but in order for that cream to get a nice fluffy consistency and not become a thick, goopy mess you need to shake it (like a Polaroid picture). This vigorous shaking also ensures the right amount of dilution, which is important for the Grasshopper in particular, because it's basically just sugar syrup and cream.

On that note, sometimes your Grasshopper can err on the sweeter side if you’re not working with top-quality ingredients. To dry it out, why not add a shot of nice dry mezcal or even a London gin? It’ll cut through the sweetness of the drink, leaving you with a well-balanced cocktail.

Lastly, presentation is super important with this drink. A poorly presented Grasshopper just looks like a wee milkshake. Don’t get us wrong, we love a milkshake, but they don't always look appetising. As always, put your coupe in the freezer to chill. When you are ready, fine-strain your Grasshopper into the coupe. It’ll pour out a lovely pastel green colour. Traditionally, it’s garnished with a single mint leaf, but we think it looks classier with a garnish of grated dark chocolate over one side of the drink to really emphasise its after-dinner mint appeal.