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May These Star Wars Cocktails Be With You on May the Fourth

star wars cantina
Star Wars/Facebook

Forget Cinco de Mayo — there’s only one holiday this weekend that we’re concerned with, and that’s Saturday, May 4th. Excuse us — May the Fourth. The unofficially official Star Wars holiday is a time of pure nerd-dom. It falls on the weekend this year, so you have every excuse to binge your favorite movies in the series, load up on some snacks, sip on Star Wars-themed drinks, and play this drinking game.

Wait, you don’t have any recipes ready? Then let us oblige you with our house-made Star Wars cocktail recipes. You should recognize the classic inspiration for most of these somewhat unique concoctions.

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Mo-Greedo

Original Cantina Scene - A New Hope [1080p HD]

Who shot first? The ruthless bounty hunter only appeared in one movie scene, but that scene gave us the super-catchy Cantina band song, which will now be stuck in your head. To honor Greedo’s lovely green skin, we altered a mojito to be more, well, green.

  • 2 parts rum
  • 1 part lime juice
  • 1 part Creme de Menthe (instead of fresh mint)
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • Soda water to top

Method: Muddle sugar and lime together in a Collins glass. Add ice, followed by rum and Creme de Menthe. Top with soda water and stir to incorporate. Garnish with a lime slice and mint. Shoot first.

Tatooine Sunrise

star-wars-cocktails-tatooine-2
Disney

It’s like a Tequila Sunrise, but with twice the fun. And by twice the fun, we mean twice the suns.

  • 1 part tequila
  • 2 parts orange
  • 2 maraschino cherries to garnish
  • Grenadine syrup to taste

Method: Pour the tequila and orange juice into a chilled glass. Slowly add grenadine syrup (we recommend starting with a spoonful) until it pools at the bottom of the glass; continue adding syrup to your desired level of sweetness. Garnish with two maraschino cherries (get it?).

Darth Collins

star wars darth vader death star
Star Wars/Facebook

A Tom Collins is a tall, refreshing gin and lemon drink. Due to its crush-ability, the cocktail has inspired several spin-offs: John Collins (whiskey), Juan Collins (tequila), Ron Collins (rum), and so on. Meet their evil cousin that turned to the Dark Side, Darth Collins.

  • 1 part vodka
  • 1 part lemon juice
  • 1 tsp simple syrup
  • Soda water to top
  • Straw to make Darth Vader noises with

AT-AT Knees

The Empire Strikes Back | AT-AT shot compilation.

The classic bee’s knees cocktail is presumably named for its cool mixture of gin, lemon, and honey. The All Terrain Armored Transport, on the other hand, is a slow-moving Imperial vehicle whose weak point is the knees. Although they can withstand a lot of blaster fire, they’re notoriously clumsy, kind of how you will be once you drink a few. Why? Because we doubled the amount of gin for the AT-AT — so nice that they abbreviated it twice.

  • 1.5 part gin
  • 1 part lemon juice
  • 1 part honey

Method: Add ingredient to a shaker with ice. Shake, then strain into a chilled coupe glass. Don’t trip over your own feet.

Dark Side N’ Stormy

star wars death star last jedi
Disney

When you’re sitting around plotting the demise of the Jedi Council, the Rebel Alliance, the Galactic Republic, or the New Republic (depending on which timeline you’re in), you need a few rum drinks to kick back.

  • 1 part dark rum
  • 3 parts extra gingery ginger beer
  • Fresh lime

Method: Pour the rum and ginger beer into a glass over ice. If desired, squeeze a wedge of fresh lime into the drink, then garnish. Try not to kill any younglings.

Qui-Gon Jinn and Tonic

star wars qui-gon jinn
Star Wars/Facebook

We like to imagine that, before he met his demise at the burning end of a two-ended lightsaber, Qui-Gon was the kind of guy who enjoyed a gin and tonic (or six). He does return as a spirit (read: Force Ghost), after all.

  • 1 part gin
  • 2 parts tonic water (or 1 part — we won’t judge)
  • Lime to garnish

Method: Pour the gin and tonic into a glass over ice. If desired, squeeze a bit of lime into the drink before garnishing. Warning: May cause belief in midichlorians.

Hot Tauntaun

The Empire Strikes Back , Tauntaun

When it’s cold as Hoth outside, curl up inside the digestive track of a hot tauntaun. Or curl up inside with cup of Hot Tauntaun. Your choice.

  • 1 part whiskey
  • 2 parts hot water
  • 2 tsp sugar (preferably dark, like Demerara)
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • Cinnamon stick and lemon slice to garnish

Method: Add whiskey, hot water, sugar, and lemon to a mug. Stop there, or stir with a cinnamon stick and garnish with a lemon slice for flair.

Admiral Sazer-Ackbar

star wars admiral ackbar
Star Wars/Facebook

It’s a trap! This sazerac, that is. The basic recipe includes an absinthe wash, which provides a sneaky kick, as well as whiskey or cognac, Peychaud’s Bitters, and sugar. We’ve made it even more trap-like by adding absinthe in addition to a rinse.

  • 5 parts rye whiskey (1 part = 0.25 oz, in this instance)
  • 2 parts absinthe
  • 3 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters
  • 1 sugar cube
  • A few drops water
  • Lemon peel 

Method: Rinse a pre-chilled Old Fashioned glass with 1 part absinthe, then add crushed ice and set it aside. Stir bitters, sugar, and water together. Add rye whiskey and ice and stir. Discard the ice and absinthe from Old Fashioned glass and strain the whiskey into the glass. Garnish with a lemon peel. Yell your catchphrase.

Finn Fizz

star wars finn last jedi
Disney

Finn is a versatile guy. The former First Order stormtrooper turned Resistance fighter has wielded a lightsaber, flown a stolen TIE fighter, and helped save the day. After all of that, we imagine we would enjoy a personal rendition of the refreshing gin fizz.

  • 1 part vodka
  • .5 part lemon juice
  • .5 part blue curaçao (it’s still citrusy, but blue in honor of his one lightsaber duel)
  • 1 tsp simple syrup
  • Soda water to top

Method: Mix vodka, lemon, blue curaçao, and simple syrup into a tall glass. Top with soda water.

Corpse Reviver

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – Teaser

If you’ve watched the first trailer for Star Wars Episode: The Rise of Skywalker, you probably noticed an ominous chuckle at the end that sounded suspiciously like Darth Sidious, aka Palpatine. But wait, isn’t he dead? We’re pretty sure Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker offed him at the end of Return of the Jedi. Either way, Palpatine (or his ghost) has probably been sipping on a Corpse Reviver No. 1 since then.

  • 2 parts brandy
  • 1 part apple brandy
  • 1 part vermouth

Method: Shake well and serve in a cocktail glass. Garnish with revenge. Laugh as you drink. Shoot lightning out of your fingers.

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Nicole Raney
Nicole Raney is the former Managing Editor of The Manual. You can also hear her on older episodes of The Manual Podcast, a…
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