It seems like the best winter drinks are almost always dark and stiff. We’re thinking of warming elixirs like the Sazerac and Buffalo Trace bourbon straight from the bottle. But once the snow melts and farmers’ markets start popping up across the city, we’re looking for something a little lighter and more playful. Luckily, many of our city’s best bartenders have embraced the season, and are offering vibrantly-hued cocktails that are as welcoming as the warmer weather.



That said, the search wasn’t quite as easy as we expected. As you may recollect from your college years, neon colored drinks are usually just glorified slushies with food coloring, which contain as much sugar as booze. We tried to locate drinks that got their color from fresh fruits or vegetables, and that were light enough that you could easily order another round. There were issues — naturally blue cocktails were particularly hard to find — but we rounded up 11 that we can totally get behind, and we also have the recipes so you can make them at home.

Check out the technicolored slideshow below, and when you’re done be sure to visit our Grub Street sister cities to see what bartenders are doing in Boston, Philly, New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Oh, and let us know if we missed any. We’re not against doing some more research on this front.