Miami Vice Drink

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This gorgeous Miami Vice drink is made with two frozen cocktails: a strawberry daiquiri and a piña colada! Layer them in a hurricane glass, add a pineapple wedge, then pop straws in there and start sipping.

I’m nothing if not a sucker for pretty drinks and this Miami Vice Cocktail is right up there with the prettiest of them! Just look at all those gorgeous colors. This easy frozen cocktail is made by layering piña coladas and strawberry daiquiris in hurricane glasses, then garnishing them with fresh pineapple wedges or fresh strawberry slices. If you’re looking for a refreshing and delicious summer cocktail, this is it.

Why is it Called a Miami Vice?

This is a topic of some debate. Logic would say that this drink is named after the 1980’s TV show, but the Miami Vice drink actually pre-dates the television series by several years. Most likely the name comes from where this drink originated: in Miami nightclubs and beach bars. Tropical cocktails are popular in these areas because they’re delicious, fun to drink and remind you that you’re on vacation.

What Does it Taste Like?

The flavor of a Miami Vice drink varies by how you drink it. Since there are two distinct layers, you can just sip the strawberry daiquiri layer or focus on the piña colada layer. Or you could mix them together and get both in one sip! The daiquiri layer tastes like strawberries with a rum kick, while the piña colada layer tastes like pineapple and coconut.

How to Make a Miami Vice Drink

Despite it’s fancy appearance, a Miami Vice cocktail is super easy to make. You will need a high powered blender and hurricane glasses if you want to achieve the look shown here, but you can also serve this drink in mason jars or other glasses. This recipe will make 4 large drinks or 6 medium ones.

Make Frozen Strawberry Daiquiris

First you are going to make the strawberry daiquiri layer:

• Place all the ingredients except the fresh strawberries in a blender. Blend until smooth.
• Pour into a pitcher and set aside.
• Wash and carefully dry the blender so that you can use it to make the next layer.

Make Piña Coladas

Now you are going to make the piña colada layer:

• Place all the ingredients in a high powered blender and process until well combined.
• Yes it is really that easy. 🙂

Assemble Your Miami Vice Drink

The last step is assembling your Miami Vice cocktail. To do this, simply add each of the above frozen drinks in distinct layers. You can put the strawberry layer on the bottom and the pineapple layer on top, as I’ve done in these photos, or you could flip it around and put the pineapple layer on the bottom etc.

Want vertical layers? If you want to get super fancy, you can add the layers vertically. So one side of your hurricane glass would be pineapple and the other strawberry. Bartenders do this by putting a piece of aluminum foil down the center of the glass, then pouring each cocktail on one side. Then they remove the foil and voila! a Miami Vice drink with vertical instead of horizontal layers.

Tips and Variations

• Virgin – To make this a virgin cocktail, simply leave out the alcohol. For the daiquiri layer replace the rum with water or strawberry juice, and for the piña colada layer replace the rum with more pineapple juice.
• Daiquiri Flavors – You can play around with the flavors by replacing the strawberries with frozen mango, peach, blackberries, raspberries or even papaya. Depending on how sweet the fruit is, you may need to add a touch more sweetener.
• Add banana – You can also add half of a ripe banana to the pineapple layer if you want even more tropical vibes.
• Garnishes – In addition to fresh pineapple wedges and fresh strawberry slices, you can also garnish a Miami Vice drink with maraschino cherries and whipped cream.
• Add an umbrella – I didn’t do it here because I didn’t have any around, but you can always add a tiny paper umbrella for a fun, vacation-y flair.

Enjoy and stay cool my friends!

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More Summery Drinks to Try

• John Daly Drink
• Arnold Palmer Drink
• Mango Mojito
• Frozen Strawberry Margaritas
• Adios MF Drink (Blue Motorcycle Drink)