Bartenders commonly refer to it as “the fajita effect.” When an attention-grabbing cocktail glides across the room on a tray, it often inspires several more orders of the same drink. Over the years, popular fajita-style cocktails have included the espresso martini, various blue concoctions, and any drink that is set on fire.
However, the latest trend in fajita-inspired cocktails goes beyond their infectious appeal. These layered cocktails feature a colorful array of ingredients that settle into separate strata, creating a visually stunning striped or ombré effect.
Conrad Hayes, the beverage director at Ottava, a Brooklyn bar, explains that the rise of drink photography and social media sharing has heightened the aesthetic appeal of layered cocktails. Ottava’s current menu features the Cruella de Vil, a rum-based drink served over crushed ice, with a striking scarlet layer of Lambrusco on top.
There are two methods for creating layered cocktails: floats and sinkers. A float is a carefully applied stripe of liquid – such as wine, spirit, bitters, or juice – that rests on the surface of the completed drink. A sinker is also added last, but due to its heavier weight, it descends to the bottom of the glass.
Both techniques create a visually stunning result, which is a significant reason why these drinks have gained popularity in our visually-driven age, where a cocktail’s appearance is almost as important as its taste.
Floats and sinkers have been around since before Prohibition. The Pousse Café, a popular drink from that era, was one of the first to showcase multiple layers. Another classic example is the New York Sour, a mid-20th-century drink that has made a comeback in recent decades. It is essentially a whiskey sour with a float of dry red wine. Perhaps the most famous layered drink with a sinker is the Tequila Sunrise, where red grenadine sinks beneath a mixture of tequila and orange juice, creating a picturesque effect.
Many new layered cocktails are surprisingly simple to make. Brother Wolf, an aperitivo bar in Knoxville, Tennessee, offers a layered twist on the classic Italian spritz, the Bicicletta, with the red-hued Italian bitter Select settling at the bottom of the highball glass. Dante, a New York City establishment, serves the Oaxacan Sunrise, a mezcal-based version of the Tequila Sunrise with a grenadine sinker. At Freight House, a restaurant in Paducah, Kentucky, the drink Oh Brother, Where Art Thou is a honey syrup-infused New York Sour.
Some layered cocktails venture into the baroque realm. Chez Zou in Manhattan offers the Haifa Vice, which allows patrons to personally apply their float. The drink comes in a special glass vessel with two chambers: one filled with a rum-based milk punch and the other with a mixture of Aperol and pomegranate. The orange punch is poured in first, followed by the application of the red float.
At LilliStar, the rooftop bar at the Moxy Williamsburg hotel in Brooklyn, customers can experience a DIY moment with the drink Ley Lines. This mango-flavored Negroni variation is garnished with a passion fruit filled with the fruit’s seeds and a passion fruit liqueur. The patron adds the fruit’s contents to the drink. Another standout is the bourbon-based Bad Ombré at Bad Roman, which boasts both a Barolo float and a Barolo Chinato sinker.
Layered options also exist for non-alcoholic beverages. elNico, located in the Penny Williamsburg hotel, serves up a mocktail called Remolacha, made with yogurt, green tea, grapefruit and lime juices, cardamom, and beet cordial. It is topped with a float of beet juice, resulting in a drink that showcases a creamy white bottom and a deep ruby top.
Bartenders emphasize that floats and sinkers not only provide visual pleasure but also contribute to the overall taste experience. The dryness of a red wine float can balance out the sweetness of certain cocktails. Ian Julian, the bar director at Red Fish Grill in New Orleans, where three float drinks are now featured on the menu, two of them with rum toppings, appreciates the additional punch that floats bring to the table. “I think people look for that extra hit of something,” he says.
As the ingredients in layered cocktails interact, the initial layered look slowly fades away. Joey Smith, the bar director at Chez Zou, sees this as a positive development. “Drinks change over time,” he explains. “In general, time is a disservice to a cocktail. Either it’s warming up or diluting. I think floats are an interesting way for a cocktail to change as you drink it.”
Christine Wiseman, the cocktail creator at LilliStar, offers another perspective on floats and sinkers, describing them as “expensive garnishes.” They not only enhance the visual appeal of a cocktail but also add another level of sophistication.
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