Vodka and Grapefruit Juice aka Greyhound Cocktail

Cocktails with fruit juice are some of the most delicious. Typically people like to stick to the sweeter fruits but the Vodka and Grapefruit Juice (aka Vodka Greyhound) is perfectly tart.

What is a Vodka and Grapefruit?

A Vodka and Grapefruit cocktail is also known as a Vodka Greyhound. If that does not ring any familiar bells for you, let’s add a little more info. The Greyhound cocktail is made with gin and grapefruit juice. It actually gets it’s name, not from the dog breed, but from the bus stations at which the drink first became popular.

The gin version of this drink was so popular, people started to experiment with other ingredients (like mint and club soda) and liquors (like whiskey and tequila). Gin typically has a fairly strong botanical flavor that works well with grapefruit juice. But some people wanted the grapefruit flavor to come out a little more so they started mixing it with Vodka.

How to make this drink:

The Vodka and Grapefruit is as easy to make as the name implies. Those are essentially the only two ingredients with the addition of a lemon or lime wedge. There are some variations that we will cover a little later that have more ingredients but they are still super easy to mix.

Equipment

highball glass

Jigger

Ingredients

2 oz Vodka

4 oz Grapefruit Juice

1 Lemon or Lime wedge garnish

Step One

Vodka Salty Dog Variation

Just like the Vodka Greyhound is a variation of the gin based Greyhound, the Vodka Salty dog is a variation of a gin based Salty Dog. The only difference between a Greyhound, of either ilk, and a Salty Dog is the addition of a salted rim; hence the name.

You can use any kind of salt you like. Margarita salt works great but some really like to use Pink Himalayan Salt for both the flavor and the color aesthetic. Use a lime wedge to moisten the rim of your glass to make the salt stick to the rim and then follow the directions as written above.

Sweet Variation

If the tart flavor of the grapefruit is a bit much you can add a little bit of simple syrup to the recipe to tone it down some. We would recommend starting with about 1/2 oz and add or subtract according to your personal taste.

Bubbly Variation

If you like to give your cocktails a little fizz, you can absolutely do that with this drink. Follow the recipe as written, but instead of 4 oz Grapefruit juice, only use 2 oz and then top with about 2 oz of club soda. If that tastes a little more watered down than you like, you can try a 3:1 ration using 3 oz of grapefruit juice and around 1 oz of soda.

Mint Variation

For the minty version you have even more options. The first is you just use some mint leaves as a garnish, maybe stirring them into your drink for a slight mint taste.

The other option, which has a much stronger flavor is a little more difficult. You will need a muddler, cocktail shaker, and a Hawthorne strainer. Put your mint into the cocktail shaker with about 1/2 oz of grapefruit juice (add the other 3 1/2 oz later). Use your muddler to smash the mint leaves until they are a mushy pulp in the bottom of your shaker.

Now fill your cocktail shaker with ice and then add in the vodka and the rest of your grapefruit juice. Put the lid on the shaker and give it a few good shakes to mix everything up. Fill your highball glass with fresh, clean ice. Remove the shaker lid and replace it with a Hawthorne strainer. Pour the drink through the strainer and into your highball glass.

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